


The Anthem of a Haunted Castle

by Emme2589



Series: Luigi's Mansion 3 Retold [3]
Category: Luigi's Mansion (Video Games), Super Mario & Related Fandoms, Super Mario Bros. (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Blood, Brotherly Love, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Major Character Injury, Pain, Psychological Horror, Psychological Torture, Psychological Trauma, Romance, Torture, Trauma, Unethical Experimentation, and everyone really, and luigi, and mario, i apologize profusely for everything ive done to gooigi, i might have gone a little overboard with the unethical science, its pretty much stanford prison experiment level horror, king boo is the weird uncle now i dont make the rules, luigi finds a dead body, science related to the telepathic link between luigi and gooigi, science without consent
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-22
Updated: 2020-07-02
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:35:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 41,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24865414
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emme2589/pseuds/Emme2589
Summary: When E. Gadd and Gooigi disappear without a trace, it's up to Luigi to get them back.Too bad they're trapped in the most dangerous haunted estate in the world.
Relationships: Luigi/Princess Peach, Peach-hime | Peach Toadstool/Luigi (Nintendo)
Series: Luigi's Mansion 3 Retold [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1754224
Comments: 10
Kudos: 37





	1. Chapter 1

Peach sat on a bench in the Toad Town park, a basket of pastries beside her. The clock tower chimed a quarter past noon, and there was not a cloud in sight; The perfect day to have lunch outside. As the clock ticked on, Peach began to worry that her two friends wouldn't be joining her that day, but her train of thought was interrupted by someone snatching her into their arms! She cried out in surprise.

"I got you now, Princess!"

Peach laughed. The person holding her was Mario.

"You fiend!" Luigi called from the entrance to the park, "Release the princess at once!"

"No way!" Mario puffed out his chest, "I'm going to make her my bride and take over her kingdom!"

"Not on my watch!" Luigi ran towards them, but Mario jumped out of his reach.

"Oh no!" Peach dramatically swiped a hand across her forehead, "Save me, Luigi!"

"Haha!" Mario set Peach on the ground, "You'll never stop me now!"

Luigi was trying his best to hold back his laughter, "Oh yeah? We'll see about that!" he reached into his pocket, but when he snapped back towards them, he simply held his hand in a finger gun motion, "Pow!"

"Urgh!" Mario grabbed his chest, "I've been wounded! Curse you, Luigi! My plans have been foiled again!"

He fell to the ground and made a show of pretending to die as Luigi took Peach's hand.

"Oh, my hero!"

This was Luigi's favorite part. While Mario lay on the ground, Luigi got to kiss the princess as thanks for "saving" her. Peach stooped slightly so he could reach, and he eagerly pressed his lips to hers. Peach loved doing this, not just because kissing Luigi was lovely, but also because he absolutely melted over it, and in her opinion, it was so adorable.

Mario watched the leaves in the trees rustle above him for a bit before he stood up, "Alright you two, that's enough."

But Luigi was done kissing her, as he simply had his head rested on her shoulder, "C'mon, bro. Everyone knows that partners are official cuddle buddies!"

"Uh huh. I'm aware. You once lost your boyfriend over that."

"It's not my fault he couldn't handle my affection."

Peach wrapped her arms around Luigi's shoulders "I love it. You're very affectionate, Luigi."

Luigi kissed her cheek, "I know. Trust me, you're not the first person to tell me that."

Luigi broke the hug when he sniffed the air, "Ooh! What's that smell?"

Peach sat him on the bench, "There's nothing better than a sweet treat on a summer's day! So, I made pastries!"

"Yes!" Luigi took one from the basket, "They smell wonderful!"

Peach gave him a pointed look, "Luigi..."

"Peach, you are a sunflower in a blazing tundra, surviving through sheer force of will and no less beautiful than you always were..."

"I wanted you to say 'thank you', but I suppose that works too."

Mario took a pastry for himself, "Thank you, Peach. Your baking is some of the best I've ever had."

"Yeah!" Luigi licked his lips, reaching for a second pastry, "It's almost as sweet as you!"

Peach ruffled his hair, "Shut up! If you keep laying on the flattery like that, I might start to think that you're insincere!"

"Nooo! I mean everything I say!" Luigi brushed some of the pastry filling from his moustache, "You know you don't have to make us anything, Peach. Your company is more than enough."

"I know, but I like making things for you! You get presents for me too, sometimes."

They finished off the half dozen pastries before Polterpup showed up, and Luigi found a stick on the ground nearby.

"Puppy! Look at the stick!"

Polterpup ran circles around him, _Yes I see the stick!_

"You want the stick? You want it?"

_Yes I want the stick! Will you throw the stick?_

"Then go get it!"

Luigi threw the stick as hard as he could, and Polterpup bolted after it. Despite how far Luigi could throw things, Polterpup was still able to get to it fast enough to catch it out of the air. He brought it back to Luigi and dropped it at his feet.

"Good boy, Polterpup!" Luigi scratched the sides of his head, "Good Puppy!"

He picked up the stick again, jumping from side to side as he waved it in the air, "Eh? Is he gonna throw it? Is he gonna throw the stick...?"

Polterpup wagged his tail, jumping to follow Luigi's sidestepping.

"Ready? Aaaand... _go!"_

The stick went flying, and Polterpup snatched it before running off with it.

"I can't believe how much you love that pup." Peach opened her parasol to shade herself from the sun, "Aren't you afraid of ghosts?"

"Well, yes, but Polterpup is the most benevolent ghost I've ever met." Luigi faltered shyly when Peach wrapped an arm around him, "He's...he's literally just a dog."

"I can tell. He still does ghostly things, though."

"Yeah, but that's more annoying now than anything."

Peach held him close to her side, and the shadow of her parasol fell over him. A breeze came through, and Luigi took his cap off to feel the cool air against his forehead.

Peach turned his head to look at her, "It's such a nice day out today, isn't it?"

Luigi smiled, his hand against his cheek, "Yeah. That's why we're out today, right?"

Peach rested her cheek against his head, and he closed his eyes, taking her hand that still held the parasol between them. He focused on the gentle weight of her arm on his shoulder, and her head flattening his hair. He let go of the parasol to snake an arm around her waist, resting his hand on her hip and pulling her closer to his body. He sighed in contentment, huddled up close to her in the shade of the parasol and the cool breeze beneath the hot summer sun.

He felt a nudge to his knee and he opened his eyes. Polterpup had the stick in his mouth.

Luigi gently broke away from Peach, "Hey, Pup! Good boy!"

Polterpup dropped the stick, spinning in a circle before standing with his front paws wide apart.

Luigi put his hat back on, "You wanna play?"

Polterpup barked, jumping around Luigi before taking off. Luigi ran after him, jumping over rocks and toads that crossed his path as Polterpup zigzagged around the park. Luigi lost track of him over the hill, so he climbed a tree to get a vantage point. He spotted the pup hiding in a bush, his white glow just visible through the leaves.

Luigi jumped to the ground, leisurely strolling through the grass to where he knew Polterpup was hiding, "Gee, I wonder where my puppy went? He was here just a moment ago..."

He felt Polterpup's ghostly presence move through the bush, the glow in his peripheral vision. The leaves only rustled slightly. Polterpup must know that Luigi could see him, but he was playing along, so Luigi continued to feign ignorance.

"Puuuppyyyyyy!" Luigi called, "Come out wherever you aaaaare!"

Polterpup shimmied back and forth, seemingly debating on whether to keep playing along or run. Luigi paused in his stroll, both hands on his neck.

"Okay." Luigi closed his eyes, "I'm gonna give you a head start. I promise I won't look. Fiiiiiive...fooouuur..."

As he counted down, he heard Polterpup leave the bush, his soft footsteps circling Luigi as he sniffed at his shoes. Luigi held back a chuckle.

"...threeeeee...twoooooooo... _one!"_

Polterpup yelped as Luigi's eyes flew open and he lunged. He wrapped up the dog in his arms, and Polterpup put his front paws on his chest as he pet him.

"Haha! Gotcha!" Luigi laughed as Polterpup smothered him with dog kisses, "Alright alright, you know the rules!" Polterpup backed off as Luigi knelt with one hand on the ground, "Ready?"

Polterpup crouched with his tail in the air. Luigi knew that Polterpup would come after him the second he bolted, so he stayed still as he held eye contact. Carefully getting to his feet, he braced against the ground, and then he ran.

He was at a bit of a disadvantage since Polterpup could phase through objects and run faster than him, but they didn't call Luigi the Mushroom Kingdom's greatest jumper for no reason. Every time the pup was close to catching him, he would leap to a nearby platform or rooftop, or he would jump down to the ground. Changing altitude was the most surefire way to outrun the ghost dog. It didn't last forever, though. Eventually, Luigi ran out of breath, and he was forced to slow down. He quickly found a huge tree to hide in, hoping it was enough of an evasive move to deter Polterpup for the moment.

When he didn't sense any movement from the ground, he took a deep breath and hopped to the grass, landing in a crouched position. Polterpup couldn't have simply disappeared. He was here just a moment ago.

Just when Luigi was about to start looking for him, he phased through the tree and tackled him to the ground.

"AHH!" Luigi was held down by the ghost as he was peppered with more kisses, "Alright alright! You got me! Uncle! _Uncle!"_

Polterpup let up, and Luigi pet him as he stood up.

"Do you always play games with him?" Peach held her skirt up as she walked.

"Yeah. He's a playful pup." Luigi leaned back to pop his shoulders.

Peach had her shoes in her parasol hand, so she was walking barefoot in the grass. Her hair was fluffing up into wide curls around her face, and Luigi found himself reaching for the wayward strands.

"Oh, sorry. My hair is a little messed up."

Luigi ran his fingers through it, finding it soft yet coarse, "I didn't know your hair was curly."

"It's more frizzy than it is curly." Peach stilled his hand, "It's a bit annoying to deal with, honestly."

"I like it. It makes you look like you ran away to live in a cottage in the woods."

"You're just saying that."

"No, really." Luigi took her face in his hands, "Do I look like I'm messing with you?"

Peach kissed the palm of his hand, averting her gaze from him, "No. I know you're sincere. Of course you are. You're Luigi."

"Uh huh. And don't forget it." Luigi gave her a kiss on her lips before he let go, "Hm? Where's Mario?"

"I don't know. He said he had something really important to do and then he left."

Luigi checked his cell phone, a new addition to his arsenal, to find that he had an unread text.

_Mario:_  
_I just remembered I have something really important to do, so I'll be gone for the rest of the day. Have fun!_

Luigi looked up from the screen with a deadpan expression. He knew very well that Mario had nothing important today or tomorrow. He probably just wanted to leave Luigi alone with Peach. It sent his nerves into a frenzy, but if Mario was going to play that game with him, then so be it.

He put his phone away, "Oh well, who needs him? You wanna sit by the river and contemplate our existence?"

Peach took his hand, "Yes please!"

The two of them continued friendly conversation until the sun was beginning to dip towards the horizon. By 7 pm, Peach was yawning. She didn't feel like returning home yet, so she followed Luigi home where they talked and laughed late into the night.

"And that's the story of how I failed a test because the teacher was convinced that I was cheating. Luckily, I didn't even care about passing that test. I still passed that class overall, and I aced all the tests I actually cared about."

Peach scratched Polterpup under his chin while Luigi talked, "I can't even imagine you cheating on a test."

"Well, that's because I never did. Even if I wasn't good in school, I'd feel awful cheating." Luigi crossed his legs on the couch, "Okay, there was this one time I snuck my notes into class, but that doesn't count! They were _my notes!_ I knew the material, it's not fair to force people to rely on memorization!"

"I agree. I never understood why the counsel won't let me change that."

"Aren't you the princess?"

"My power isn't limitless, Luigi."

"Alright, fair enough."

The two lapsed into silence, and Luigi could feel his eyelids grow heavy. He fought to stay awake, but Peach was nodding off too. It was nearly midnight, and they'd both had a long day.

Luigi settled into the cushions. Maybe he could tap out for just a little while.

***

Luigi was disoriented when he woke up. He wasn't sure where he was at first, but he did register a warm figure nestled into his side. He was on the couch at home, leaning on Princess Peach as she lay over the armrest. He was settled in the crook of her arm, his hand in hers as they rested in her lap. Luigi could have been embarrassed for being in her personal space, but he was so comfortable that he didn't want to move. He rested his cheek on her collarbone, wrapping both arms around her waist and relaxing against her to go back to sleep.

Yet, he found that he couldn't. He was too cold. Even though he was draped over Peach's sleeping form, he found himself shivering. Carefully so as not to wake her, Luigi pushed against the back of the couch, getting up and tiptoeing to his room to grab a blanket.

He took the comforter off his bed before heading back out, but his foot hit something as he was leaving. He gasped, a hand over his mouth.

On the floor was Luigi's prized telescope. A gift from Toadette. It was broken clean in half. He was lucky he still had his shoes on, or he could have cut himself on the shattered lens and mirrors.

He knelt on the ground, gingerly taking half of the telescope in his hands. How much would it cost to get this fixed?

"Luigi?"

Luigi blinked, "Oh, hey Peach. Did I wake you?"

Peach knelt in front of him, "What happened to your telescope?"

Luigi sighed, letting his arms fall to his sides, "I don't know."

Peach tilted his chin up to meet her gaze, "I'm sorry. I'll buy you a new one."

"No, that's okay." Luigi took the blanket from where it had fallen on the floor, "Can we...go back to sleep? I don't want to deal with this right now..."

Peach wrapped the blanket around his shoulders, "Sure. Careful of the glass."

For the past few days, Mario and Luigi had suffered lost and damaged items in their house. There was never any evidence of a break in, but now that Luigi had lost his prized telescope, he figured maybe they should do something about it.

Luigi woke up to the sun in his eyes. He rolled over, his arm falling over Peach's stomach. His head rested on her sleeve, nuzzling affectionately into the crook of her neck. He didn't have anything important today. He could afford to just lie here for a little while longer.

He heard a shutter go off, and his eyes flew open. Mario was holding a camera.

"Mario!" Luigi jolted so hard he fell to the floor, "Oof! What are you doing!?"

"You looked cute like that." Mario shook the polaroid photo once it had left the camera, "Don't worry, I won't show this to anyone."

"You'd better not!" Luigi snatched the photo from him, "Oh gosh. That's so embarrassing!"

Peach sat up and rubbed her eyes, "What's embarrassing?"

"Nothing!"

Peach looked over his shoulder, "Aw, look at you, Luigi!"

Luigi covered his face, _"Ay, mamma mia..."_

"You're such a sweetheart!" Peach kissed his cheek, "Look at how cute you are!"

Luigi's face was burning, but he found himself smiling anyway. He stashed the photo in his pocket, "Um, thank you, I think."

His mind wandered back to the smashed telescope, and his blushy, lovestruck face fell into a thoughtful frown.

Mario set the camera down, "Luigi?"

Luigi bit his lip, "My telescope got destroyed last night."

"What?" Mario flinched away, "What happened?"

"I don't know, but I think..." Luigi shifted his weight to one foot, "I think it had something to do with the break-ins..."

Mario shook his head, "At this point, we should probably set up a hidden camera."

"Seriously." Luigi caught Peach as she stumbled from her seat on the couch, "Peach. I can walk you home, if you like."

She smiled as she held his arm, "Thank you. I would like that."

They made it as far as the castle garden, still walking arm-in-arm with Mario smiling and rolling his eyes a few paces back. Peach broke away just inside the gate, and she gave Luigi one last kiss before heading back towards the castle.

Peach waved over her shoulder as she walked, "I'll see you tomorrow?"

Luigi gazed at her lovingly, "Count on it."

The brothers headed back towards their house, and Luigi found himself lost in thought.

Mario gently elbowed him, "What's up, Weegee?"

"I'm just a little worried." he replied, "We haven't seen Gooigi since last Sunday."

"Don't you have that telepathic link with him?"

"Yeah, but it doesn't work if we're too far away from each other." Luigi focused, but he could only feel a foggy haze where Gooigi's thoughts would normally be, "I've been feeling the same thing from him since we last saw him."

Mario unlocked the house for them, "So you know he's still alive...?"

"Yeah, he's definitely alive, but where he actually is or what he's feeling is beyond me."

Once they returned home, they gathered everything that was broken as they searched for all the cameras they owned. Luigi's gaze fell on the mess in the living room, astounded by how many things they'd actually lost over the course of the past few days.

The rest of the day passed uneventfully, though Luigi did call Toadette between contracts to ask about where she'd gotten the telescope and if it was possible to fix it. By the time 7 pm rolled around, Luigi was anxiously ruminating over everything that could possibly go wrong.

Mario set up a hidden camera in the corner of the room, "Okay, you ready?"

Luigi tilted his head, "Did you reroll the tape?"

"Oh, thanks for reminding me." Mario hit the record button and then stepped back, "Alright. It's time to catch this thief."

"Perfect." Luigi headed to his room, "I'm going to bed. Don't let Polterpup wake me up."

"Yep."

Luigi fell asleep face-first on his pillow. He didn't know why, but despite his great day, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was very wrong.

***


	2. Chapter 2

Luigi woke up early in the morning, shivering under covers that were too hot. He ran his fingers through his hair as he scratched his head, wiping some of the sweat away. He pushed the covers off, and was hit with a blast of cold air. His teeth chattered as he climbed out of bed, stumbling into the bathroom and turning the light on. He stripped out of his pajamas and climbed into the shower, turning the water as hot as he could stand until his skin turned red and raw. He was still shivering. He let his hair fall over his face, closing his eyes and trying to breathe.

Once he was dried and dressed, he opened the bathroom door, coming face-to-face with Mario, holding a towel and a change of clothes over one arm.

"Luigi?" he said, "Are you okay?"

"Uh, yeah. Fine." Luigi pushed past him, "I think I'm gonna go lay down, though."

Why did he suddenly feel so wrong? Gooigi's presence in his head hadn't changed much, although it did feel a bit fuzzier. Harder to understand. It was buzzing, like Gooigi was agitated.

Luigi retrieved his cell phone from the bedside table, dialing the number for E. Gadd's lab and hitting call.

It rang four times with no indication that anyone would answer, and when they finally did, Luigi didn't recognize the voice as the professor's.

_"Why did you answer it!?"_

_"I don't know! What if it's someone important!?"_

_"On the old man's phone!? Gimme that!"_

Luigi hesitated before clearing his throat, "Um, hello?"

_"Oh, it's Luigi!"_ the first voice sighed in relief, _"Sorry about that, man. The weirdo doesn't know how caller ID is supposed to work."_

Luigi tried to place the voice, but came up blank, "Who is this? Where's E. Gadd?"

_"Oh, my name is Powder. Like, Powder Blue? Except my ghost is purple. I handle E. Gadd's field research in the mine."_

"Oh." Luigi crossed his ankles as he lay back on his pillow, "You're the one who startled me so badly I hit my head on the frozen doorway."

_"Hey! It was an accident, and that was when the Dark Moon was missing, so it doesn't count!"_

"So, where's E. Gadd?"

The voice on the other end was silent. The second ghost took the phone back, and Luigi recognized it as Umbra's voice; One of the skinny blue ghosts that haunted the studio in the Gloomy Manor.

_"We don't know where E. Gadd is."_

Luigi felt his hands trembling as they held the phone, "What?"

_"He went out on a research mission and never came back. Gooigi went out to look for him, but he hasn't returned yet. It's been about a day since then, and we're starting to really worry, so we have Evershade ghosts out looking for both of them, but so far they're nowhere to be found."_

"What? _What!?"_ Luigi lashed out without thinking, "You're telling me they both just disappeared!? How!? Why didn't you call me!?"

_"We didn't have your number! I mean, we do now I guess, but we all died like a hundred years ago, you think we know how a cell phone works!?"_

"Unbelievable!" Luigi felt angry tears gathering in his eyes, "How can they be gone!? Nobody kidnapped them or anything!? They're just gone!?"

_"Oh no! I think he's going to cry!"_

_"Give me the phone!"_

_"No! You'll make it worse!"_

_"Give it!"_

_"I hate hearing Luigi cry!"_

_"Umbra, give me the phone!"_

There was a struggle until Powder's voice came through, though her demeanor was far from angry as she spoke through the receiver.

_"Luigi, it's going to be okay. We can send someone over with a pixelater so you can warp to the lab. In the meantime, I'm going to send more ghosts to the place where they disappeared. Take a deep breath, alright? I'm sure they're fine."_

Luigi was a little embarrassed that he was famous among Evershade Valley's ghosts as the guy who cries, but he didn't have time to think about that now. He tried again to reach through the telepathic link he shared with Gooigi, but once again, he found nothing. Was he okay? What happened? Why didn't anyone think to contact him?

_"Luigi? Are you still there? You need to breathe, okay?"_

Luigi sucked a breath in through his teeth, "Yeah, sorry. I'm just worried. Send someone over and we can figure out what's going on."

_"Sure. We'll be there in twenty minutes."_

Luigi hung up, feeling a headache creeping along the inside of his skull. What was going on with him? Why did he feel so odd?

It was then he noticed the crack running up his bedroom wall.

He closed his eyes. Whoever had been breaking into their house must have been in here. Though the action scared him, curiosity eventually overpowered his fear, and he looked around to assess the damage. His curtains were torn from the window. His books and albums were strewn about the room, their pages ripped to shreds. Light bulbs were broken. Sheets were burned.

Luigi bolted from his room. The kitchen knives were stabbed into the floor, ketchup spread all over them, making it almost resemble a murder scene. Broken jars and dishes ran the length of the cracked tile. Luigi moved on to the living room, where furniture was toppled. The TV was busted, the rugs blackened by fire, the cushions cut open to spill their cotton filling all over the floor.

"M-M-Mario..." Luigi stumbled back the way he came, "Mario! MARIO!"

Mario emerged from the bathroom in his red shirt and boxers, "What!? What's wrong!?"

"Someone attacked us last night and the whole house is in ruins bro I'm freaking out!"

"Okay, calm down." Mario took his shoulder, "What's going on?"

Luigi led him to the kitchen, where the knives were stuck into the cracked tile, and Mario stared wordlessly.

Someone began to bang on the front door, _"Mario, Luigi, please let me in!"_

They looked at each other. The voice belonged to Princess Peach.

"Open the door."

Luigi ran to let her in as Mario retreated to finish getting dressed.

"Oh my god!" Peach slammed the door behind her. She was dressed in her pink sweater and light blue overalls, "I'm sorry I'm here so early, I just..."

She trailed off as her eyes fell on the rest of the room.

"What...what happened?"

Mario came around the corner fully-dressed, tucking a stray hair beneath his hat, "Looks like we suffered another break-in."

The temperature dropped, and Luigi turned his head to find Polterpup hiding beneath an upturned box, trembling in fear.

"Pup?" Luigi knelt down as he approached, "Hey, Puppy..."

Polterpup let the box fall over him as he whined.

"Hey hey, it's me." Luigi reached out, but Polterpup only scooted further away, "Puppy. Polterpup. It's me, Luigi. It's okay."

Polterpup looked up at him, and Luigi's heart broke at the fear in his eyes.

"Polterpup." he stooped even lower, making himself look as small and non-threatening as possible, "I'm not going to hurt you."

He stayed like that, waiting for Polterpup to decide he was no threat. He slowly extended his hand, and Polterpup sniffed it before leaping into Luigi's hold.

"Oh god..." Luigi felt the poor pup shaking in his arms, "Whoever did this to Polterpup is getting the underside of my boot."

Mario gasped, "The camera!"

He scrambled to free the hidden camera from the corner of the room, and he opened the viewfinder to replay the new recording.

It started at 8 pm, when Mario went to bed. Nothing much happened aside from Polterpup falling asleep on the couch, but Mario skipped around a bit until a figure could clearly be seen throwing plates and cutting pillows with a huge pair of scissors. It was dark, so it wasn't clear who it was at first, until they stepped into the moonlight and their features became more clearly distinguishable. Oval-shaped eyes, a large nose, a smooth moustache, all on a narrow face.

Luigi was looking at himself.

Luigi's figure in the darkness appeared like him in every way aside from his irises. Usually a bright blue color, they were now a ghostly purple, almost appearing to glow in the dark. When the eyes weren't in frame, Luigi almost swore he was watching himself do something...normal. Well, if normal for him was senseless violence. The illusion ended when the figure in the video threw another plate and it connected with Polterpup.

"Ah!" Luigi covered his eyes, "Turn it off! _Turn it off!"_

Mario snapped the viewfinder shut.

Luigi reached for the camera, "Mario, you have to believe me. I didn't do this, I wouldn't do this!"

"Luigi, it's okay, I believe you." Mario set the camera aside, "But if it wasn't you, then why does it _look_ like you?"

"I don't know!" Luigi displaced his hat trying to ruffle his hair, "The only one I can think of is King Boo, but he's not my enemy anymore!"

Peach found her voice, "He's not?"

"What if he backed out on his word?" Mario said.

"He wouldn't." Luigi stood amongst the mess, "I really think he was telling the truth when he said he wouldn't bother me anymore. King Boo may be a big jerk, but he's not a liar."

"Then it must be another ghost." Mario rested his head in his hands, "Do you know of any ghosts that can directly control people?"

Luigi opened his mouth, then he closed it.

Luigi's phone began to ring, so he answered it, "Hello?"

_"Luigi, you're too far away to send any allies that we have at the moment, so you need to find a pixelation screen nearby."_ the voice was Powder's, _"There's one in Princess Peach's castle, but it might be easier to find the one in the woods nearby."_

"Wait, what?" Luigi glanced out the cracked window, "Why would it be easier?"

_"Because the Princess' castle is under attack right now."_

"By who?"

_"No idea, but it looks like the castle itself isn't even damaged, so it's probably not Bowser."_

Luigi gulped, tugging the collar of his sweater, "Somehow, that worries me more."

"Uh, Luigi?" Mario guided him from the window, "Who are you talking to?"

Luigi sighed, "I'm talking to one of the Evershade ghosts. I tried to call E. Gadd this morning, but these guys answered instead of him. Apparently, both him and Gooigi have gone missing."

"Missing?" Mario touched the arm holding the phone, "Luigi, put it on speaker."

_"Is that your brother?"_

"Yeah." Luigi turned speaker mode on, "Can you still hear me, Powder?"

_"Yeah."_

Mario continued, "Why did you call E. Gadd?"

"Because..." Luigi set his phone on the ripped couch, "Because..."

He bunched up the fabric of his sweater in his fist.

"You had a bad feeling." Mario finished for him, "I thought you seemed ill this morning. Were you afraid that something had happened to Gooigi?"

Luigi glanced to the place Polterpup had gone back to hide, "Yeah. I was afraid I was feeling something weird through our link, but I think now...maybe I was feeling the aftereffects of being hypnotized..."

He couldn't help but feel sick at the thought. He didn't like the idea of being controlled, and knowing that someone he didn't even know was forcing him to do bad things without his knowledge or consent...it really put a bad taste in his mouth, to say the least.

_"Luigi, I'm afraid we can't help you much when you're so far away. If you don't know where the screens are, I can guide you, but you should pick one and get moving."_

Luigi shook his head as he sat down, "I can't."

_"What? Why not?"_

His gaze wandered to Mario and then to Peach before it settled on the phone, "I'm scared."

It wasn't the first time Luigi had been afraid to leave the house, but somehow, admitting it out loud made him feel small. He remembered how he had been freezing cold even in the hot shower, and he wrapped both arms around himself as he watched a tear fall into his lap.

_"Luigi...what happened?"_

Luigi squeezed his eyes shut, "I don't know."

Mario offered an arm beside him, and Luigi leaned into him, his head on his shoulder.

_"Luigi, let's back up a bit here."_ Umbra's voice was back, _"What do you mean hypnotized? Were you overshadowed?"_

"Overshadowed?" Luigi looked up in time to see Peach pick up his phone to sit on his other side, "What's that?"

_"Overshadowing is a ghost ability that allows one to possess a living body. Most ghosts can't do this because they aren't powerful enough to fight with the consciousness of a spirit that's still inhabiting a body, but there are a few that have been around long enough to have that power. Some can overshadow a person so convincingly that even close family can't tell the difference, though that's incredibly rare."_

Luigi processed the information while Peach lay her head on his, holding his hand and drawing circles in it with her thumb. It helped keep him calm.

"Wait, so..." Luigi took the phone from her, "Is that what's been happening to me? Is that why things in our house keep getting destroyed even with no evidence of a break in?"

_"If you don't even know if you've been overshadowed, then you probably haven't been. Overshadowing is obvious, even among the oldest and most experienced ghosts. Of course, it can slip under the radar if you were asleep at the time, but it's still a jarring enough experience that it should have woken you up, especially if you were destroying things under its influence."_

Luigi's skin prickled, "Is there an aftereffect? Like, do you feel something specific once the overshadowing is over?"

_"The biggest aftereffect is a lower body temperature, usually accompanied by cold sweat as the body perceives the air to be too hot. It can also cause scrambled thoughts or a physical fight-or-flight response depending on the severity of the mental fight needed to push the overshadower away."_

Luigi felt his stomach drop.

_"Okay, that's enough, Umbra. He already said he was scared."_ Powder took the phone back, _"We've actually found someone who can come get you, but they won't be there for another thirty minutes. Can you wait that long, or are you going to try finding a screen?"_

Luigi glanced down at Polterpup as he jumped into his lap, "Hey, Pup. I'm so sorry."

Polterpup seemed to have forgiven him, as the fear he had displayed previously was absent. He was back to his default state; Begging for pats.

Luigi took the phone off speaker before bringing it to his ear, "I'll find the screen in the woods. Can you guide me there?"

_"Yes I can. Go head down the path and I'll tell you how to get there."_

The four of them left the house, and Mario separated from them, "Go ahead without me. I'm going to go see who's attacking the castle."

"Are you sure?" Luigi caught his arm, "The last time we separated, you got kidnapped."

"Oh, I'll be fine. We're not in the depths of Bowser's castle this time. You know me, Luigi. I can keep myself safe."

"Well...okay." Luigi saluted off the top of his hat, "See you later, bro!"

"Bye!"

Luigi made sure he had his flashlight with him before taking Peach's hand and leading her down the path, his phone back on his ear, "Powder, tell me where to go."

***


	3. Chapter 3

Luigi and Peach emerged in the lab of the Gloomy Manor, though Luigi lost his balance as soon as he was through while Peach landed gracefully on her feet. It was much tidier than it was last time Luigi visited, but the desk, multiple monitors, and chalkboard were unmistakable. Powder extended her hand to him, and he flinched away from her sharp eyes.

"Ah, sorry. Force of habit." he took her hand and she pulled him to his feet.

"No worries. I know I can look pretty scary." Powder returned to E. Gadd's computer, "Now, what exactly made you think you'd been overshadowed?"

"Well, me and Mario set up a hidden camera in our living room, and it looked like the person who destroyed our stuff was me."

Powder's hands stilled over the keyboard.

She leaned on the desk, tracing the edge of the keyboard with her gaze, "That's very serious."

"You're telling me! They even attacked Polterpup!"

"No!" Powder gasped, "And you don't remember doing any of that?"

"Of course not! I would have tried to stop it otherwise!"

Peach took Luigi's shoulders from behind, "Hey, it's alright. You're okay, Luigi."

Luigi sighed, leaning backwards into her so his head rested on her shoulder.

"Luigi." Umbra offered him a chair, "We can check for traces of ghosts on you to see who might have overshadowed you."

"Really?" Luigi sat down, "How?"

"Easy." Umbra wiped a thumb across Luigi's forehead, "Powder, where's the ectoplasmic signature whatever?"

"I think Lester left it in the cellar."

"What's it doing there!?" Umbra disappeared into the floor, _"Lester! If you keep stealing lab equipment I swear I'll turn your polarity inside out!"_

There was a tense few seconds where everyone was just waiting in silence before Umbra returned, a box in their hands with a scanner and a screen.

"Okay." they swiped their thumb across the scanner, which hummed to life. It whirred for a bit until the screen lit up, "Huh?"

"What's wrong?" Powder glanced over Umbra's shoulder.

"It doesn't recognize any foreign ectoplasm." Umbra held the scanner out to Luigi, "Here, take your glove off and touch the scanner."

He did, and the scanner swept over his fingertips.

"That's so odd." Umbra shook the device, "If it's not picking up a ghostly signature, then you couldn't have been overshadowed."

"What? But I didn't..." Luigi choked, "I didn't destroy the house! I wouldn't!"

"Calm down, I didn't say you did." Umbra set the device aside, "Have you been feeling anything from Gooigi?"

Luigi focused on the link, "No. He's too far away. Although...I did feel some agitation from him this morning..."

Powder hovered closer, "What kind of agitation?"

Luigi scratched his cheek, then he shrugged.

Umbra and Powder looked at each other, seemingly connecting the dots.

"So..." Umbra laced their fingers together, "About Gooigi...and E. Gadd..."

"Yeah? Tell me where they disappeared."

"Okay, for the record, I told him not to." Powder said, "I tried to stop him. I tried to stop Gooigi too!"

"Okay, just tell me where they went. Please."

Powder cleared her throat, despite having no need to, "Well..."

"They disappeared in the Charleston Estate." Umbra finished for her.

Luigi would have fallen over if he wasn't already seated.

His voice came out as a croak, "You're kidding, right?"

Powder crossed her arms, "I wish we were."

Peach fiddled with her overall straps, "What's the Charleston Estate?"

"It's a _huge_ haunted house." Luigi explained, "That place is more haunted than the Great Pyramid! Not even the most experienced ghost hunters would dare set foot in the place, so it's been untouched by the living for almost a thousand years. What did E. Gadd think he was doing going into a place like that?"

"I have no idea." Powder sat in E. Gadd's chair, "Maybe he thought it would be safer since it's been so quiet lately? But regardless, that's why we're so worried that they haven't come back, even though it hasn't been that long."

Luigi rubbed his eyes until he saw a swirl of colors, "Have you been able to contact them through their communicators?"

"Obviously not! They either aren't answering, or the connection has been compromised! Neither option is good!"

"And I assume there are no pixelators near the estate?"

"You assumed correctly."

"Right..." Luigi stood on shaking legs, "I need to go after them."

The two ghosts stared at him like he'd just swallowed a taxi.

"Are you crazy!?" Umbra took his shoulders, "If both E. Gadd and Gooigi disappeared without a trace, what makes you think you have a better chance!?"

"I don't, but we can't just abandon them!"

"Guys, bad news." Shady, a small green ghost, phased into the lab, "Oh, hey Luigi."

_"Ciao."_

"We can't enter the estate."

Powder opened her mouth, but Umbra beat her to it, "You can't enter the estate!? Why not!?"

"Because it's blocked!" Shady waved her arms in frustration, "There's a barrier around it that prevents us from getting inside! It's most likely where E. Gadd and Gooigi are, but nobody can verify that!"

Luigi bit his lip as he assessed his options. If he went in after his friends, then he would most likely disappear as well. Three missing people was obviously worse than two, and Gooigi probably faced a similar dilemma when E. Gadd vanished under these very circumstances. It was better left alone, he knew that, and yet...

"I need to go after them." Luigi searched the lab for anything he could use, "Gooigi is still alive, I'm positive of that, and I can't just abandon him when he might need me."

"But if you go in there, you might not ever leave!"

"Do you have a better idea!?" Luigi came across a row of Poltergusts, but none of them were the one he was looking for, "Where's the Poltergust G-00?"

"Luigi, you can't!" Shady blocked his path, "Please. We'll figure something out. We'll save them somehow, just don't go in there alone!"

Something about Shady pleading with him like this made tears prick on the back of his eyes. He gazed down at the floor, feeling dread get stuck in his throat.

"I can't do nothing." Luigi said, "I know that if I was in Gooigi's place, he would come after me without a second thought. Maybe there's a way to destroy the barrier from the inside. Maybe I can bring more people with me, but just leaving them there is out of the question. I'm going whether you want me to or not, so are you with me or against me?"

Shady let her gaze fall, twisting her hands together, "With you, obviously. I knew you'd say that, but going inside is foolish."

"I don't care if you think it's foolish. I think it's foolish to simply leave them to their fate."

Shady shrugged towards the other two ghosts in the room, who both mirrored the action.

"Well, regardless, you can't take the Poltergust G-00 with you, because Gooigi had it on him when he left. You'll have to pick a different one."

Luigi looked at each one of the devices, until his eyes landed on the final in the row, "What's this one?"

"That's the Poltergust Five Thousand Plus." Powder explained, "E. Gadd had just finished its newest upgrade before he vanished."

Luigi slung it over his shoulders, clicking the flashlight on and off, "What's this button for?"

"It's the upgrade." Shady said, "He added a new super shock that's stronger than the regular shock, but it takes longer to replenish. He added a few other things, but that's the most notable one."

"Yeesh, these things are getting more and more complicated..." Luigi fiddled with the controls for a bit longer before he put the nozzle away and tossed his normal flashlight to Peach, "Here."

She caught it, "Wait, what?"

"You're coming with me, right? We might as well give you some kind of defense."

"Oh, you're letting me go? Just like that?" Peach ran a thumb over the flashlight handle, "I thought I was going to have to fight you on it. You know, 'Peach, you're far safer staying here' and, 'But I can't let you go into danger without me!'"

"No no no!" Luigi laughed, "I've known you long enough that there's no point in arguing with you. Besides, I'm sure we'll be safer in numbers. I...uh..."

Luigi stuffed his hands in his pockets.

"I don't want to go in there alone."

Peach smiled, tipping Luigi's cap back so she could kiss his forehead, "You won't be alone."

Luigi took her hand, "I know."

He stayed like that for a bit, just taking in her presence before he reached for his cell phone and dialed the number he'd had memorized since he'd gotten this new phone.

He got a little worried that it went on ringing, but eventually, the call connected.

_"Hello?"_

"Hey, Mario. So it turns out E. Gadd and Gooigi are trapped somewhere really dangerous. You wanna come with us?"

The other end was silent for awhile. Luigi was just thinking that maybe the call was dropped when Mario spoke again.

_"I can't."_

"What?" Luigi began to pace with the phone to his ear, "What do you mean you can't?"

Mario's voice carried just a hint of embarrassment, _"I've been uh...kinda sorta captured?"_

Luigi felt one of his eyelids rise, "Captured?"

_"I'm fine, but I can't find a way to escape."_

"Who captured you?"

The line was silent again.

"Bro, please answer my question! Don't tell me it was King Boo!"

_"No! No, it wasn't King Boo!"_

"Well, spit it out! Who captured you!?"

Peach put a hand on his shoulder, halting him in his tracks. He hadn't noticed that his heart was racing.

_"Uhh..."_ Mario mumbled something too quiet to hear.

"What was that? You need to speak up, bro."

A monsterous voice could be heard in the background, _"Mario!? Why did you capture Mario!? Where's the Princess!?"_

Luigi tugged on a fistful of his hair, "How did you get captured by Bowser!?"

_"Look, it's a long story! Point is, can you come get me, bro? I think they're taking me to Bowser's castle."_

"Yes of course we'll come get you. Just hang tight, okay?" Luigi hung up and dropped the Poltergust, "Okay, change of plans. We'll fetch Mario, then we'll go after E. Gadd and Gooigi."

"Call us if your telepathic link changes!" Powder said.

"I will." Luigi took Peach's hand, "Can you pixelate us to Bowser's castle?"

"No problem."

And so, both of them were pixelated out, just as Luigi felt an odd sensation of ice on the back of his tongue.

***

Mario was lying in a cage on the floor of Bowser's throne room, his feet propped up on the bars with his arms crossed over his chest. Sometimes he really felt that his daredevil nature got him into more trouble than it was worth. The first time he was kidnapped by King Boo, it was because he charged into a situation before realizing how easy it would be for a hundred boos to overpower him. Compared to his more cautious brother, he tended to get in over his head more often. It was why he had more scrapes and bruises than him in their childhood photos.

Although, he couldn't help but feel that something about Bowser was...off, somehow.

Mario sighed heavily, "Mamma mia...no wonder Peach hates this so much..."

He heard footsteps enter the room, but they were too light to be Bowser's, and they were too slow to be a Bowser enemy. He turned his head, "Who's there?"

His cage door opened, "Hey, bro. It's me."

"Luigi?" Mario quickly got up to follow him.

"Yep. Sheesh, isn't that uncomfortable?" Luigi had his back turned to him, "That cage has to be made of steel."

Mario was hearing alarm bells in his head, "Um, I mean it's a flat surface..."

"Nevermind, bro. Let's get out of here. C'mon, I know a shortcut."

Mario was a little unsettled. He knew Luigi better than anyone, so if something was off about him, it stuck out like a sore thumb.

"Luigi, hold on." Mario stopped him, but he was still turned away, "Can I see your face?"

"Hm?" Luigi turned further away, "Why?"

"Just...I missed you." he said, "Just look at me for a second."

Luigi didn't move, so Mario tugged on his shoulder to get Luigi to face him. His blood turned to ice. Rather than their usual blue, Luigi's irises were tinted purple. It was more subtle than in the video recording, but it was definitely there.

"Hey, bro, we don't have time for this." Luigi said, "Come on. Peach is further ahead. We'll meet up with her soon."

Luigi's face was sincere, despite the almost glowing nature of his discolored eyes. It was so eerie, like a mirror with errors in it.

"Okay, but can you tell me something, Luigi?"

"Sure. What is it?"

Mario couldn't stop staring at those eyes, "Just tell me...when is your birthday?"

"Huh? What is this, bro? Of course I know my own birthday."

"Then you have no problem telling me."

Luigi's eyebrows lifted in surprise, until he took a step back and a grin stretched across his whole face.

"Alright, you got me." Luigi laughed low under his breath, "I have no idea when Luigi's birthday is."

"Who are you!?" Mario pointed an accusatory finger at him, "What did you do to Luigi!?"

"Don't worry, your stupid brother is fine." he began to walk in a circle around Mario, "He's not even putting up a fight. Why would I hurt someone who gives up their body so willingly?" he ran his tongue over his front row of teeth, "And I must say, this is one of the nicer bodies I've inhabited. Strong, flexible, and the bloke brushes his teeth every day. Believe it or not, I haven't taken a body this nice in a long time."

"Stop talking about him like that!" Mario had his fists raised, but he was hesitant to start a fight, "He's not some product to be sold! I don't know who you think you are, but you're vile!"

"Now now, there's no need for insults." Luigi unsheathed a knife from his belt, "You don't need to know who I am. Only that you are vital to my plans."

Mario watched in horror as Luigi brought the dull edge of the knife to his throat, "Stop! Don't do that!"

"Oh?" Luigi lowered the knife, "I'll make this nice and simple for you, Mario; Come with me, and I'll leave you and your brother unharmed."

Before Mario could make a choice though, the dark light descended on Luigi, and a purple haze swept over him until his breath fogged in the air and his eyelids fluttered closed.

"Luigi!" Mario caught him when he fell forward.

Peach was holding Luigi's flashlight. She took the knife from him, tossing it a few feet away before placing a hand on Luigi's cheek.

Luigi's eyes opened, blue once again, and he gasped, _"Ouch..."_

"Luigi? Is it you?" Mario brushed his bangs from his face, "Are you okay?"

Luigi's teeth chattered, "M-M-Mario? What h-happened?"

Luigi's skin was cold and pale. Mario took his hand, rubbing it between his own to try and get some warmth back into it, "I think you were overshadowed."

Luigi sat up, "What!? I..." he sneezed, shivering violently, "Oh no! D-did I hurt you?"

"It wasn't you." Mario hugged him, "That was not you. And no, they didn't hurt me. Peach used the dark light on you."

"Oh." Luigi finally registered where they were, "Um, how long was I out?"

"I don't know." Peach lifted him into her arms, "We'd better get out of here, though. Bowser could be back at any minute."

As they headed back to the Pixelator, Mario asked, "What's the last thing you remember?"

"Being pixelated in the lab. Did they tell you who they were?"

"No, but they said that I was vital to their plans, whatever that means."

He decided to leave out what they said about having a stolen body. Seeing that evil grin on his brother's face was something he was sure he'd never forget.

By the time they were back in the lab, the icy feeling had faded from Luigi's fingertips, but he was still too cold. Mario sat him on the bench against the wall, draping a blanket around his shoulders.

"Luigi, what happened!?" Powder felt his forehead, "Were you overshadowed!?"

Luigi shivered but said nothing.

"Shady, can you get him something warm to drink?"

"Of course!" Shady disappeared.

Luigi was distracted. For the first time in over a week, he felt something distinct through the link he shared with Gooigi. It was a shuttering kind of fear, mixed with something like greif and resolve. It only lasted a second, but he knew what Gooigi felt like in his head. It was unmistakable.

"Luigi?" Peach wrapped him up in a warm hug, "What are you thinking about?"

Luigi leaned into her, "I felt something from Gooigi."

"Really?" Powder glanced at E. Gadd's computer screen, "What did you feel?"

Luigi tried to dip into Gooigi's head, but the feeling had faded, "He almost felt guilty, I think."

If Umbra was right about overshadowing, then taking over someone would be difficult because of the host fighting back. Yet, Luigi hadn't even known that something was wrong until it was already over.

"Powder." Luigi said, "Can living goo be overshadowed?"

A lightbulb went off above Powder's head.

"That's it!" she returned to the computer, "Yes, living goo can be overshadowed. In fact, goo can't put up a fight the way people can, so goo gets overshadowed much easier. It must be your link with Gooigi that's making you so weak to it!"

"I suspected as much, but if the link is the problem, then how do I stop it?"

Powder's head hung, "I have no idea..."

Shady reappeared with a mug in her hands, "Here."

Luigi took it, "Thanks. No copper?"

"I wouldn't stick my hand in a hot drink if that's what you're asking."

Luigi shrugged, taking a tentative sip, "Mm. Not bad."

The warmth began to spread to the rest of his body, and the numbness was finally chased away. He sighed, trying to wrap his head around what had happened.

Mario put a hand on his arm, "Luigi?"

"I'm just trying to think." Luigi lowered the mug into his lap, "We have to go as soon as possible. I don't think I could handle getting overshadowed again."

"Luigi, are you sure you want to go after them?" Umbra took his face in their hands to make him look up, "If you go into the Charleston Estate, you might not come out alive."

Luigi swallowed.

"I know." he took another sip from the mug, "But you know I'd rather die than abandon my family."

Umbra gave a hearty chuckle, "Of course. Just don't forget the Poltergust."

"Right." Luigi finished his drink before standing up and shouldering the hefty vacuum, "Okay. Pixelate me as close as you can."

"I'd better go with you." Shady moved to his side, "I can't enter the building, but maybe I can still help somehow."

Powder fired up the Pixelator, "I'll let everyone know you're heading in that direction. Oh, and don't forget your Scrammi-Coms."

"I see E. Gadd still hasn't given these things a better name." Luigi hooked the Famicom-like communicator around his ear.

"And, guys?" Powder looked over each one of them, "Be careful."

Peach held Luigi's flashlight close to her chest, "We usually are."

Luigi reached for Peach's hand as they were pixelated out. He squeezed his eyes shut, worrying for one panic-inducing second that he wouldn't come out as himself.

It didn't happen. He emerged on the other side, stumbling and landing in Peach's lap.

He gave her waist a squeeze, his ear to her chest, "S-sorry..."

"It's okay." Peach lifted his head, "It's only natural you'd be anxious."

Luigi got to his feet before helping her up, pressing a button on his communicator, "Okay. Where to, Powder?"

_"Just head down the path into the woods. You can't miss it."_

Peach tied her hair back into a ponytail as they walked, "Luigi, are you in any pain when you're being overshadowed?"

"Pain?" Luigi swept his flashlight over the path, despite the fact that it wasn't even dark out, "Well, no. It doesn't hurt. In fact, I don't feel anything while it's happening, and afterwards it's mostly just cold and scary. I only hope Gooigi isn't absorbing all the pain for me..."

As they wandered down the path, the forest seemed to close in around them. The sun became blotted out by huge storm clouds, the trees growing more blackened and spindly the closer they came to the estate. Luigi felt goosebumps all over his arms as he found it harder and harder to breathe.

A raven cawed in the distance, and Luigi jumped, "AAIIIEE!" he placed a hand over his racing heart, taking several deep wheezing breaths.

Peach took his hand, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah yeah, sorry." Luigi regained his composure, his hysterics dying down a little bit, "Ugh. This isn't good for me."

"Hey, it's okay, Weegee." Mario pat his back, "We're right here."

Shady covered her eyes with one hand as she gazed down the path, "The barrier is a little farther ahead, just inside the yard."

Mario gazed over the hill, "You can feel it from here?"

"Yeah, but it wouldn't matter if I couldn't. I tried to get inside earlier, remember?"

Luigi joined Mario over the hill. He had never been to the estate before, but he did hear about it from Gooigi during one of his visits. Even though he'd seen photographs taken by the goo creature, seeing it in real life was infinitely more chilling.

The iron gate was rusted shut, so Luigi had to give it a hefty tug to get it open. The resulting squeaking made his ears ring. The yard was full of dead grass and leaves, the porch of the house dilapidated and crumbling. The house appeared to be a sort of small castle, with gothic-style spires and stained glass windows, though it did have a couple modern features, like the digital doorbell and porch lights. Cobwebs clung to the outside of the roof, and it was pitch-black inside all the windows.

Luigi, Mario, and Peach's shoes all crunched through the foliage as they approached. Luigi's flashlight landed on the front door, which sported a decorative bronze knocker. About three feet from the steps, Shady stopped, a fuzzy outline becoming opaque in front of her, like a wall.

"Sorry, guys. I'll see what I can do from out here."

"No worries, Shady." Luigi tested the porch steps before putting his full weight on them, "We've got this covered."

Shady smiled and waved, "Okay. See you later."

Once Shady was out of sight, Luigi took another step, but the rotting floorboards gave way and he sunk in up to his knee.

"AH!"

Mario caught his arm, "Easy!"

Peach took his other arm, and they hoisted him out, revealing that Luigi's pant leg was covered in mud.

"Yikes. Oh no." Luigi brushed his leg off, _"Perchè capita sempre a me..."_

Mario helped him stand up in the grass, _"Stai bene?"_

_"Sto bene. Grazie."_ Luigi sighed, "Okay, let's try this again."

He made a cautious path across what he thought was the most solid area of space, and his hand reached out until his fingertips brushed the doorknob.

***

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess this is where I should mention that I am attempting to write Mario and Luigi speaking Italian. I'm using Google Translate to do this as I didn't know a word of Italian other than "Grazie" before I wrote this story, but if there are any Italian speakers reading this, feel free to correct my grammar if needed.


	4. Chapter 4

As soon as he'd entered the house, Luigi could finally feel Gooigi's presence again. It was overwhelming at first, as he was hit with the full-force of Gooigi's fear, but as emotions passed between them, it turned to recognition, then confusion.

_Luigi!?_

Luigi was so relieved he could have cried, "Gooigi! I feel him! He's here!"

Mario grabbed his arm before he could fall, "Really!? What's going on!?"

"I'll figure it out! One second."

Luigi was still too far away to fully dip into Gooigi's mind, but before he could even attempt that, Gooigi forcefully pushed him out.

_What are you doing here!? Get out!_

The fear was back, and it was powerful. Luigi fell to his knees as he pressed a hand into his chest, feeling the way his heart pounded in response.

He gasped as he pushed against Gooigi, _What do you think!? I'm here to rescue you!_

_No! She can't have you! You have to leave! GET OUT! **GGETT OUUTT!!!**_

Luigi felt a piercing pain inside his skull and was forced to draw back. He was swallowing and gasping. He couldn't get enough oxygen. He wasn't even aware of someone shaking him until he'd already shed a few tears.

"-igi! Luigi, please! It's okay! I've got you!"

Luigi wrapped his arms around Mario, "I'm sorry. I can't. He's-!"

"Don't think about that now." Mario held onto him firmly, "We're going to save him. I swear, Gooigi will be fine, but you have to breathe."

Luigi felt another pair of arms wrap around him from behind, and he took a huge breath of much-needed oxygen.

The lingering pain faded, but Luigi still lost his balance. He let Peach and Mario help him to his feet, and they held him up until his head stopped swimming. He stood up straight, let go, and brushed himself off.

"Okay, I'm fine now." Luigi pinched the bridge of his nose as he retrieved his flashlight, "I'd better not try that again."

"What happened?"

"Gooigi booted me out." Luigi began to walk, conscious of what parts of the floor could give way, "He's terrified. I've never felt so much fear from him before. He doesn't want me here, that's for sure."

The room they had entered was clearly a drawing room. It reminded Luigi of those British daytime TV shows that took place in Victorian England, but more gothic. It was all black, save for the carpet, which had clearly once been a vibrant red. The furniture was ornate, made of some kind of dark wood, with solid black fabric along the seat and back that was punctuated by buttons, pushed in far enough to make a 3D quilted pattern. The rest of the room was too destroyed to make out what it had once looked like, with scorched wallpaper and torn tapestries, though the crumbling brick on the wall may have once been a fireplace, and the broken glass over the opulent wooden table in the center of the room may have once been a chandelier.

Luigi's flashlight fell over one of the armchairs, which had a huge tear through the middle, exposing the feathers inside.

"Why wouldn't Gooigi want you here?" Peach's flashlight scanned the wallpaper, "Doesn't he want to be rescued?"

"He said, 'she can't have you', so he's probably just afraid for my safety." Luigi stroked his moustache, "Still, he should know me by now. I'm not heartless enough to just leave him here."

Mario took his arm to halt him in his tracks, "The person who overshadowed you said that you and I are part of their plans."

Luigi felt a strong urge to dip into Gooigi's head to at least see where he was, but he held himself back, "Maybe Gooigi knows that. What scares me is just the fact that the pain I felt from him was similar to pain from when Gooigi has gotten hurt. Remember when Gooigi would melt in water, I felt burning from that?"

Mario was putting the pieces together, "Oh no..."

The three of them had made it to the end of the drawing room to another door, but before Luigi reached for the doorknob, he stopped and noted the eerie silence. Silence alone wasn't a bad sign, but ghosts tended to change the air, which changed how sound moved through it. If ghosts were in a room but trying to hide, it was usually obvious, and this case was no exception.

Luigi let his arm fall to the side "It's too easy. Watch out."

Mario and Peach assumed a fighting stance. Luigi reached for the doorknob again. He expected ghosts to jump out at him like they usually did, whether to attack or block the door or whatever. Even Polterpup was no stranger to jumpscares, although for him it was all in good fun.

What he didn't expect was to start hearing a little girl begin to cry.

He whipped his head around. A ghost resembling a young girl who couldn't have been older than ten was crying on the floor near the entrance. She had long black hair, and she wore a white Victorian nightgown.

Luigi put his flashlight away, approaching the girl slowly, "Hello?"

The girl stopped crying, removing her hands from her face, though she didn't look up.

"You're Luigi." she said simply, "Don't lie. I see the green cap and Poltergust. I heard that you blind ghosts with your flashlight and then suck them up into your vacuum. I heard that you're ruthless. They say that you have no mercy."

Luigi huffed out a laugh, "Nah, not me. I'm kind of a coward. I only capture ghosts if I'm afraid they'll hurt me or someone I care about."

"Are you going to hurt me?"

"Not if you don't hurt people." Luigi took his cap off, placing it over his heart, "Hero's honor."

The girl looked up at him, her eyes a ghostly white.

"So, you know me obviously." Luigi grimaced, "But what's your name?"

The girl inspected him for a moment, then she got up from the floor, her ghost tail flicking behind her.

"I'm Victoria." she said, "Are you really not going to hurt me? They told me you hated ghosts, that you like to see them suffer..."

"No, I'm just afraid." he replaced his cap, "I've spared ghosts before, you know. I have a ghost dog that can phase through walls, but I keep him around anyway because I love him. I wouldn't dream of capturing someone if they posed no threat to me, especially a child."

Victoria twisted her hands together, "Can you get me out of here? Can you help me?"

Luigi slowly reached for her hands, wiping an icy tear from her cheek, "Sure I will. Hey, don't cry. It'll be okay."

She grabbed him in a hug, and Luigi pushed his panic down, his arms encircling the sobbing child.

"I should have known Mama would lie about you." she held his shoulders as she pulled away, "Mama always lies. She said that she loved me, then she trapped me in this house."

Luigi frowned, "Who's your mama?"

"I don't remember her name, but she is awful." Victoria shuttered, "She only loved me until she was done hurting me. Now she's in the basement with a green jar and an old man, and she'll probably only love them until she's done hurting them, too."

Luigi's eyes widened, "The basement?"

"Yeah. It's where her lab is."

The gears were turning, "Can you show me?"

"No!" she pushed him away, "I'm not going back! Never again!"

_Wow. Good job, Luigi,_ "I'm sorry. Hey, are you listening? I'm sorry. I won't bring it up again."

She was still trembling, and Luigi hovered near her, unsure of what to do.

"Hey." Peach stepped in for him, "Do you hear me? We're not going to force you to do anything, okay?"

Victoria looked up at her, "Are you a princess?"

Peach blinked. She wasn't wearing her crown, so she didn't know where that had come from, "I'm sorry?"

"Oh sorry, it's just that you're so pretty, I thought you were a Princess."

Peach smiled at her, brushing her spectral hair back so both her eyes were clearly visible, "You don't have to be a princess to be pretty."

"Yeah, I guess not. What are you two doing here?"

Luigi was relieved that Peach had been able to diffuse the situation, "This is my brother Mario, and this is my...my girlfriend, Peach."

"Girlfriend? Ah, you're in a courtship."

Luigi laughed as he blushed, "Yeah, something like that."

Victoria played with a strand of her hair, and the silence gave Luigi time to think of something else.

"Victoria, do you know what's holding the barrier up?" he asked, "I bet I could remove it if I knew where it was coming from."

Victoria thought about it, "No, but I know who does. Follow me."

She flew across the room to the door leading further into the house, and she disappeared through it. Luigi tried the door, but it was locked.

"Oh." Victoria poked her head back in, "You need to use the door, huh? One moment."

She rummaged around in the drawing room until she procured a key, lifting it up in the low light towards him.

"Haha! Yes!" Luigi took the key, "Thank you!"

"You're welcome." Victoria disappeared through the door, and Luigi unlocked it, pushing the door open once the key disappeared in the lock.

The hallway was completely black. No lights whatsoever. A bolt of lightning outside illuminated a long shadow across the floor before it went dark again.

"Victoria?"

"I'm here." her soft white glow didn't illuminate much, "Is it too dark?"

"Yeah. I'm gonna take out my flashlight, okay? I'll try not to shine it on you."

She moved to his side, and he took a deep breath before he retrieved the flashlight and flicked it on. The hallway was sparse, made of dark polished wood carved into intricate shapes on the staircase and the banister. Of course, the staircase was broken, so it cut off their access to the second floor. There were also various splintered holes in the floor, and when Luigi shone his flashlight into them, all he saw was complete darkness.

"Victoria!"

Victoria gasped, hiding behind Luigi as his flashlight landed on three more ghosts.

"Didn't we tell you to get rid of him!?" the first ghost appeared to be in his fifties, and he wore what looked like a suit and tie, "We told you he was dangerous!"

"He said he wouldn't hurt me!"

"And you believed him!?" the second looked a bit younger than the first, about 25, and he wore a polo shirt, "You can't trust him! Look at the vacuum on his back!"

"You need to stop trusting people so easily!" the third looked even younger, only about fifteen at most, wearing suspenders and a bowtie, "It's _Luigi_ for crying out loud! _Luigi!"_

Luigi tried to shield Victoria from them, "Wait, did you tell her that I would ruthlessly chase her down until she stopped me!?"

"Yeah! She was supposed to at least hinder your progress!" the third ghost sneered, "Instead, she cowered like a little baby!"

White-hot anger shot up Luigi's chest, "You said this to a _CHILD!?"_

The three ghosts froze, the oldest muttering, "Uh oh."

Luigi flashed all three of them with the strobulb, turning the vacuum suction to full blast as he caught their tails in the nozzle. He yanked back with all his might, begging his shoes to find traction on the floor, until the three ghosts phased out and Luigi slammed into the wall.

He fell onto his back, rubbing his nose, "Drat."

"You alright, Luigi?" Mario helped him stand.

"Yeah." Luigi looked around as the lights came on, somewhat illuminating the dim hallway, "We gotta find them. Victoria?"

Victoria was cowering in the corner.

Luigi put his flashlight away, "Victoria?"

"Are you going to catch me now...?"

"What? No." Luigi held his hands up in surrender, "Those guys were hostile. I'm not gonna try and catch you."

"How were they hostile? They didn't attack you..."

"Well, they clearly don't like me, and they scared you really badly." Luigi explained, "If I hadn't attacked first, I know for sure they would have."

Victoria straightened up, "Fair enough. Sorry, you just scared me."

"Sorry about that. It wasn't my intention." Luigi took his flashlight out again, heading for a door across the hall, "I have a hunch that they're the ones holding the barrier in place."

The door wouldn't budge, but not because it was locked. The doorknob turned and the door opened slightly, but it wouldn't open wide enough to squeeze through.

Luigi tried to see into the room, "Victoria, is this door blocked?"

"Let me see." she phased through the door, where a dresser was pushed up close to the door frame, "Oh, I can't move this. It's too heavy."

"Then we'll find a way around it." Luigi hit his communicator, "Powder, do you have a floor plan?"

_"No. The barrier is blocking signals from reaching us. I don't know how you can even speak to me through the Scrammi-Com. Maybe E. Gadd isn't as stupid as he looks."_

Luigi rolled his eyes, "That's okay. I'll find my own way around."

_"You haven't run into too much trouble, have you?"_

"Not so far, but I got in touch with Gooigi, and he's scared out of his mind. We haven't seen the worst this place has to offer."

Luigi found another door in the hallway, and this one was unlocked, though it went in the opposite direction of where the three ghosts had disappeared to.

"Okay. Here goes nothing."

***


	5. Chapter 5

Luigi pushed the dresser out of the way of the door, bracing against it and grunting with the effort, "Nice." he took his flashlight back out. The room they were in was some kind of servant's quarters, with a brick oven, kitchen sinks, a wash basin, a table, and some dishes and towels. Most of the room was intact, but many of the dishes were broken, and the towels, though folded, were covered in mold. Luigi pulled a face at that. He didn't want to know how long those towels had been rotting.

"Wow. You're strong." Victoria huddled by his side, "No wonder you've caught so many ghosts."

Luigi shrugged, "If you say so. Who were those guys, by the way?"

"My uncles?" Victoria carefully avoided Luigi's flashlight beam, "They're Mama's brothers, and they're evil too."

"I can tell." Luigi's flashlight landed on the torn curtains, "Do you know their names?"

"The eldest is Uncle Fabio. He's the only one who's older than Mama. The middle one is Uncle Lachlan, and the youngest is Uncle Stefan."

Luigi made it to the end of the room, and he staggered backwards at the stench coming from the pantry. This was worse than moldy bread or mildew from a leaky roof, it smelled like something had died inside and had been rotting for a long time.

Never had it once occurred to Luigi that because ghosts were incarnations of a dead person, they must have left a body behind.

"Oh." Victoria returned to Luigi's side, "Don't open that cupboard. There's nothing inside, and it's locked anyway. Leave well enough alone."

It was all the confirmation he needed. The shock of the moment coupled by the awful smell was enough to make him vomit. He fell to his hands and knees as he gagged, imagining a young girl pounding on the door, begging to be let out.

"Luigi." Mario held him up, tears in his eyes, "Listen, okay? You're okay."

"Why?" Luigi coughed, "She's just a child! She didn't deserve any of this..."

A flare of righteous anger warmed him down to his fingertips. He leaned on Mario as he stood up, covering his mouth and nose. Peach was a few paces away, trying to push the thought from her mind as she sobbed. Luigi pulled her into a one-armed hug, his other around Mario.

Luigi laughed as he was struck with hysteria, "I'll show those stupid uncles. I'll destroy them. I hope they like the ghost vault!"

He wheezed, his gaze softening when it landed on Victoria.

"Did they do this to you?"

Victoria frowned, dropping her gaze to the floor and tucking a black hair behind her ear, "No. Mama didn't lock me in the cupboard, and neither did my uncles. It was someone else. Don't worry about it. I'm sure he's long gone by now."

"Who was it?"

"The old groundskeeper. He hated kids, and didn't want to deal with me. I guess he forgot to come back and let me out."

"That's horrible." Luigi placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, "I'm so sorry."

Victoria took his hand and stared at it.

"You're very kind, Luigi." she let go and led him to the next door, "You're nothing like my family said you were."

"Well, it is true that I have a fear of ghosts." Luigi took a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe his mouth, "I've maybe jumped the gun a couple of times, but I try to be fair."

Victoria tried the door handle, "It's locked. I'm not going in there alone."

"Do you know where the key is?"

"I do!" Stefan jumped out of the ceiling.

"AAAAHHHHHHH!!!" Luigi instinctively flashed the strobulb, but Stefan had moved out of the way.

"Wow, sis was right! You get scared so easy!"

"Urg! Hold still!" Luigi spammed the flash button until his thumb was sore, trying to catch the slippery teenager in a moment of panic.

"Haha! You can't catch me!" Stefan flew through the wall.

"Ugh! Stupid-!" Luigi hit his forehead with the flashlight, "I almost feel bad for him!"

Turning to the side for anything he could use, he spotted a frying pan discarded among the trash. He took it in his hands. It was nice and weighty.

He watched for the glow and waited for the temperature drop before reeling back and swinging it like a baseball bat. Stefan flew into the wall, destroying a stack of chairs and falling among the splintered wood.

"Aha!" Luigi flashed the strobulb one last time, and Stefan began to fight the vacuum.

"Hey! You can't do that! That's cheating! Let me go!"

"No way!" Luigi tugged as hard as he could, "You won't be able to torment anyone in the vault!"

Stefan screamed, "Victoria, you stupid child! Save me!"

Victoria hid behind Mario and Peach, eyeing the tank on Luigi's back in fear.

"Get. In. THE. _VACUUM!!!"_

_"NO!!!"_

Stefan disappeared with a _Pop!_ and all the lights came back on.

"Oh yes!" Luigi punched the air, "Luigi number one! Wahoo!"

Mario gave him a high-five, "Nice job! I'm not used to feeling so useless!"

"Trust me, Mario." Luigi took the Poltergust off to stretch his shoulders, "Just you being here is good for my nerves."

The key to the next door was in the pile of trash where Stefan had fallen. Luigi picked it up, then he headed to the next door. The key slid in easily, and the door opened.

He found himself staring into an open freezer, hidden behind a normal-looking door. Yeesh, haunted houses. The freezer was off and empty, aside from a glowing orb. Its shifting colors resembled an oil spill, and the light it cast on the freezer walls was purple.

Luigi realized what this must be. He lifted the frying pan again, bringing it over his head to smash the orb. It shattered, and a shockwave spread across the whole building.

Victoria's eyes became big round discs, "The barrier!"

She flew through the ceiling, and Luigi hurried back out towards the front door.

"I'm free!" Victoria flew into the sky, "It's been so long since I've seen so much wide open space! Yippee!"

"Luigi!" Shady crashed into him, "You guys are okay! I was afraid you would never come out!"

"Shady!" Luigi pushed her away, "Wait, you're here and-!"

"The barrier's gone!" Shady announced, "Now's our chance! I bet the estate is being stormed at this very moment!"

Luigi laughed along with her, until he noticed Victoria at the edge of the yard. She flew to him, her arms wrapping around him tightly.

"Thank you Luigi. You've shown me kindness, and I will never forget that as long as I exist."

"You should go." Luigi hugged her back, "Doesn't matter where. I guarantee the Evershade ghosts will be happy to have you. You're a child, you shouldn't have to deal with all of this."

"No." she gazed at him in child-like adoration, "I'm not just a child. I've been haunting these halls for a long time, probably longer than you've been alive. I want to help you. Why did you come here?"

Luigi could have sworn that Victoria was no older than ten, but looking at her now...she almost looked slightly older. Twelve, maybe. He knew that ghosts could age with experience if they died young, but he'd never seen it before. Maybe now it was safe to tell her the truth.

"I came for my friends." he explained, "You mentioned a green jar and an old man in the basement? I'm sure those are what I'm looking for."

"Oh." she bit her lip, "Mama is holding those two hostage. I know where the old man is and I can take you there, but I won't enter the lab."

"That's fair, but first..." Luigi turned to re-enter the estate, "I need to try something..."

***

Based on how strong his link felt at any given moment, he could tell where the lab was relative to the first floor, if Gooigi was being held there anyway. He knew trying to contact him again was risky, but he was dying of worry and curiosity, so he sat on the only couch in the drawing room that wasn't burned or smashed to bits, Peach and Mario on either side of him.

"Pull back as soon as you feel pain, okay?"

Luigi laughed as he closed his eyes, "Trust me, bro. That's instinctual, now."

Peach held his left hand and Mario held his right. It made him feel safe enough that he leaned back and slowly eased into Gooigi's mind.

Gooigi once again put up resistance, _Luigi, please! Don't stay!_

_I'm not going anywhere without you. We're leaving together or not at all. That's final._

Gooigi didn't reply for awhile, but his emotions calmed down just a tad. There was a storm of fear in him, surrounded by appreciation, agitation, love, and finally, acceptance.

_Thank you._ Gooigi's thoughts were a little easier to read now, _I'm just so terrified._

_I know you are. Can you show me where you are?_

With some hesitation, Gooigi allowed him access, and Luigi's body relaxed with nobody occupying it.

When Luigi tried to look around, he found that he couldn't. He had no eyes. Gooigi was suspended in a jar, and so Luigi couldn't form eyes to see with.

Sensing his confusion, Gooigi thought, _You have to feel for it. Seeing through goo isn't the same as seeing through eyes._

_How do I do that?_

Gooigi took control to guide him, stretching his consciousness until a room came into view. It was so odd. Luigi didn't "see" anything, and yet he had a sense for what was in the room. He could even vaguely tell the colors of certain objects if he focused through the sea of green.

The first thing he noticed was that the room was clearly some kind of chemistry lab, with liquids in test tubes and beakers and various machines that Luigi didn't recognize through the haze, though he could name a couple like the hot plate and Bunsen burner. There was a ghost wearing a lab coat doing various things in the background.

_Who's that?_

Gooigi's fear spiked, _That's the scientist. I have never known a more evil ghost in all my travels. She won't tell me her name, but she keeps talking to me about you and Mario. It's so creepy._

Luigi watched the scientist move across the lab, _What does she say?_

_Horrible things. She said that your hair would be fun to burn, and she compared your skin to soap, plus some other things I dare not repeat. She tried to taste me, Luigi!_ Taste _me!_

_Oh my god, is that even safe!?_

_That is_ not _the issue here!_

The scientist set a beaker beside Gooigi's jar, twisting the top off and lifting an eyedropper above the goo.

_Luigi, get out!_

Luigi watched the drop of clear liquid as it fell into the goo.

_**LLLUUIIIGII!!!** _

Luigi registered searing pain as Gooigi forced him out, and he gasped as he woke up in his own body.

"Luigi." Mario squeezed his hand, "What happened?"

Luigi grounded himself as he realized what that must have been. If there really was a high-tech chemistry lab in the basement, then there would be no shortage of dangerous concentrations of various components. The thing that hit Gooigi could have been a million things, it could have even been water, but one thing he knew was that goo melted in the presence of acetone, which, unlike water, hurt Gooigi even when Luigi wasn't in his head creating a feedback loop. He couldn't smell anything when he'd entered Gooigi's head, so he couldn't verify if it was acetone or not, but the fact that the pain had felt different than a water burn was enough to terrify him.

Peach ran a cool hand over his flushed face, "Luigi, what are you thinking?"

Luigi took a few breaths to steady himself, "The scientist in the basement is probably Victoria's mother. She's doing weird experiments on Gooigi, and...I think she's the one who keeps overshadowing me."

Victoria entered the drawing room, "Luigi, none of the ghosts can enter the basement. We think maybe that was intentional, but we can't be sure."

"That's okay. We can manage for now." Luigi stood on shaky legs, "Can you lead me to the old man?"

"I can. Follow me."

Poltergust at the ready, Luigi, Peach, and Mario followed her as she opened a door to another staircase, tucked into the wall as if it wasn't meant to be found.

"I can't go any further, but there's a door to your right as soon as you enter the basement. That's where the old man is."

"Thanks." Luigi had the flashlight on the brightest setting as he descended, "See you."

Victoria left, and Luigi made a beeline for the room on the right. Thankfully, it was unlocked. He pushed it open-!

"Get away from me, you demon! Haven't you done enough!?"

Luigi's heart soared, "E. Gadd!"

E. Gadd was in a cage made of transparent bars. He stood up, grasping the bars in his hands, "Luigi! I'm so happy to see you!"

"Same! How do I get you out?"

"Careful! These bars are made of acrylic! If you break them, they'll shatter!"

Luigi looked all across the bars for a switch or release or anything. There was nothing. Just the bars separating half the room from the other.

"Wait." Luigi backed away, "I know what to do."

He brought out his flashlight and switched on the dark light, scanning it over the bars. A switch appeared from the darkness, and he sucked the illusion orbs up into the vacuum. He flipped the switch, and the bars descended into the floor.

"Luigi!" E. Gadd took the collar of Luigi's sweater, "You haven't noticed anything from Gooigi, have you!?"

Luigi cringed, "Oh, I noticed something alright."

"Well, spill! What happened!?"

Luigi steered him towards the door, "I'm not spilling the tea in this basement dungeon! Let's go upstairs!"

***


	6. Chapter 6

"So..." E. Gadd had a hand to his chin, "You've been overshadowed, and Gooigi may have all kinds of weird chemicals mixed into himself."

"Yes."

"And you think it's the same person doing both of these things?"

"Yes."

"And you think that you're so easy to overshadow because Gooigi is easier to overshadow due to being made of goo?"

"Yes."

"Well, I just have one more question then..." E. Gadd got stars in his eyes, "How did it feel to be overshadowed through your link!? Was it the pins and needles I predicted!?"

"E. Gadd!" Peach shoved him out of Luigi's personal space, "Now is not the time to be a scientist!"

"Ah, you're right! I'm sorry!" he knocked on the sides of his head, "Jeez. Sometimes I don't know when to stop."

Luigi settled on the couch from where he had flinched back, "For the record, it was a horrible experience and I hope I don't have to relive it ever again."

"Right. Of course."

Luigi stood up to face the group, "Now that I'm thinking about it again though, I can't help but worry that I'll get overshadowed at the worst possible time."

"Well, there's always that possibility" E. Gadd said, "I'm sure we can find some way to stop it."

"How? Umbra said that fighting an overshadowing should be possible, but I can't seem to block it!" Luigi massaged his head, "Mamma mia, I've never had a worse headache..."

Mario linked arms with him, "Maybe it'll be possible after we save Gooigi."

Luigi kicked at the frayed edge of the carpet, "Maybe."

As they sat in silence, Luigi felt something else through the link. Something he couldn't quite place. He didn't get it at first, until he felt a spark of defiance, and then total emptiness.

He reached back, _Gooigi?_

_Gooigi isn't here._

Luigi's eyes snapped open. He stumbled backwards, tripping over some of the broken furniture and falling flat on his back.

"Luigi!?"

He didn't hear. He felt that sensation of ice on the back of his tongue, snaking down his throat and wrapping around his heart, constricting it until it beat harder in protest.

This process was slow. _Agonizingly_ slow. Luigi stood up before he'd even registered the icy feeling in his mouth, but remembering what had happened before, he was quickly beginning to panic.

"She's trying to overshadow me! I can't fight it!"

Peach aimed the flashlight at him and switched on the dark light. The feeling faded, but only temporarily, and she eventually had to turn it off before it overheated.

"Get out of my head!" Luigi desperately thrashed, throwing his head into the wall. Nothing he did seemed to make any difference.

"Luigi!" Mario grabbed him, "Stop!"

"She's going to take me away!" Luigi swallowed as his throat went numb, "Don't let her hurt you! _Get away from me!"_

Mario watched in horror as his brother's eyes slowly changed from blue to purple, and his expression drained of emotion.

At the end of the change, Luigi's skin was pale as a sheet of paper, and his face was twisted in a wide smile.

"Wow. I didn't expect it to be so easy."

Mario shoved him, and he fell to the floor.

"Oof!" Luigi jumped to his feet, "Now now, Mario. Is it really a good idea to mistreat your brother?"

"You aren't my brother!"

"Oh. Sorry. Let me fix that for you." Luigi swiped a hand over his face, and when his eyes opened, they were their usual blue, "M-M-Mario! Help me! I'm scared!"

Mario was stuck on the spot. He didn't know whether to hug him or punch him in the face.

"Hey, don't worry, bro. She's gone now." Luigi smiled in his reassuring way, "Let's go get Gooigi, okay?"

Mario was genuinely confused about who he was looking at, so he blurted out, _"Ricordi come siamo arrivati qui?"_

Luigi just lifted one eyebrow, "What are you saying, bro?"

_"Per favore, parla con me, fratello. Mi stai spaventando."_

"Why are you...oh, Luigi's bilingual, isn't he?" Luigi sighed as the purple bled back in, "Ah, well. It was worth a shot. Either way, you're here for Gooigi, right? I'm gonna lead you to him. You're up for that, right?"

Mario massaged his temples, "Are you going to give my brother back?"

"Sure, once I'm done with my experiment."

Mario had a very bad feeling, but they were kind of at a standstill. If they could find the source of this problem, it might be easier to root it out, and it was clear the scientist wasn't going to give up Luigi without a fight. Still. Where was she going with this?

Mario glanced at E. Gadd, who gave a single nod.

"Okay." Mario gestured to the form of his brother, "Lead the way."

***

_Luigi!_

Luigi jumped at the sudden thought. He wasn't unconscious, but he couldn't see or hear anything. It was like he was in a void.

_Luigi, what happened!? Can you hear me?_

Luigi's disembodied thoughts scrambled together, _Yes, I can hear you. I think I was overshadowed._

_Overshadowed? Why?_

Overtime, details began to appear. Gooigi's jar was still in the lab, but Luigi only barely recognized it. It was warped, like looking through a kaleidoscope.

_That scientist lady keeps overshadowing me through you. At least, I think she is._

_What? Is that what that is?_

Luigi felt something brush up against him, and his senses sharpened. Someone had entered the lab.

_Oh, before I forget, are you okay, Gooigi? Did she burn you with acetone?_

_Not just acetone. Alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, hydrochloric acid, liquid hand soap, vitamin C..._

_I'm so sorry! Wait, what was that last one?_

The jar was lifted, and Luigi's focus snapped to the area around the jar.

He found himself holding the jar.

_You really are being overshadowed!_

_Yes I know, can't you do anything!?_

Mario tried to snatch the jar but Luigi was faster, "Oh, you think it would be that easy? I'm your brother, Mario. I know you better than anyone."

_"Stop!"_ Mario lunged for the jar, _"Give me the jar!"_

"Mario, be careful!" E. Gadd called from the doorway, "Gooigi is in a delicate state right now! If you break the jar-!"

Mario stumbled into Luigi, knocking them both to the floor. The jar shattered against the table, spilling goo and broken glass all over the floor.

"GOOIGI!"

Luigi's senses began to grow fuzzy as the puddle stretched thin.

_Luigi, focus! We can pull ourselves together!_ Gooigi gave him a mental tug, _Imagine your body forming from the goo!_

He did, and with Gooigi's help, he began to emerge.

"No!" E. Gadd hovered near the puddle, his arms outstretched, "You can't form like this! Who knows what you have mixed in you that could explode!?"

Luigi faltered, _Explode!?_

_No, it's okay! I've got a handle on it!_ Gooigi caught him, _It's okay. I promise._

_Then why is E. Gadd afraid?_

_Because he doesn't know what was dropped into me, but I do. I can differentiate them. As soon as I reform, I'm going to separate them from myself safely._

Luigi pulled back on the reform.

_Luigi._ Gooigi didn't let go, _I promise. I won't let you get hurt._

Luigi stayed where he was, mulling over it as Mario blocked Luigi's body from reaching them. He braced himself as he leapt forward.

_I don't know what I can trust right now, but I know I trust you._

_Thank you. Just let me handle this!_

Gooigi reformed, stepping back from E. Gadd and knocking a stirring stick to the ground. He steadied himself on the table, hurrying to the cupboard where the empty beakers were. He pulled each beaker out, ensuring they were empty, before extending his right hand to let a single drop of fluid fall into each one. Once he was done, he shuttered, wiping his forehead in relief.

"Oh, you got it all?" E. Gadd fussed over him, "Are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?"

Mario and The Scientist had stopped in their scuffle to stare at them, until Mario broke the silence.

"Gooigi!" he ran to give him a hug, _"Stai bene!"_

Gooigi returned the hug.

"Wait, if Luigi is being overshadowed..." Mario looked him up and down, "Is Luigi in there too? Is he okay?"

Gooigi gave a thumbs up.

"Whew. Thank goodness." Mario glanced behind him, suddenly aware of a looming presence.

"HYAH!"

Peach hit Luigi over the head with her flashlight before the scientist had a chance to attack them. She blew a hair from her face, exasperated.

Luigi cringed, _That's going to hurt when I wake up, isn't it?_

Gooigi inwardly sighed, _Yep. Sorry._

***

Luigi felt ice overtake him as he came back to consciousness. The back of his head _hurt._ He had no idea Peach could hit that hard. Besides the pain of his head injury, all he felt was the cold. He registered voices, and then someone placed their lips to his cheek. It prompted him to open his bleary eyes.

"He's awake!" Shady's voice rang out, "He's awake, everybody! We can stop panicking now!"

Luigi found himself back in the lab. He was wrapped in three layers of blankets, facing a space heater, and with an ice pack on his head. As feeling returned to his fingertips, he reached out from the blanket cocoon to place his hand on Peach's cheek.

His breath fogged in the air, "You hit me."

She winced, "I'm so sorry."

Luigi chuckled, "Don't be. I'm impressed you hit me so hard I got the ghost knocked outta me."

Peach brushed his hair off his face, "Is it really you?"

Mario took his shoulder on his other side, _"Sei tornata?"_

Luigi nodded, _"Sì, fratello. Sono io."_

"It's him." Mario deflated, "Don't scare me like that, bro! I was terrified!"

"Right, I forgot. You're not supposed to scare older brothers."

"Or girlfriends!" Peach poked him in the chest, "Sometimes I'm afraid you boys scare me on purpose!"

Luigi tried to sit up, "Wait, where's Gooigi?"

Peach pushed him until he lay back down, "He's here."

Luigi looked over her shoulder. Gooigi was sitting on the desk, his head hanging, while E. Gadd stuck a thermometer into his gooy head.

"Gooigi?" Luigi tried to climb out, but Peach blocked him, so he ended up grasping her sleeve, "Are you okay?"

"His signature was messed up by all that reckless experimenting." E. Gadd picked up a small piece of paper, "I'm trying to get him back to a neutral state."

It was odd. Gooigi's transparent body appeared lumpy, and if the feelings coming through their link were any indication, he wasn't comfortable like that at all.

E. Gadd held a jar up to him, "Recall."

Gooigi groaned.

"I know, I know. This is the last time, I promise."

Rather than enter the jar, Gooigi reached out and touched E. Gadd's hand. The old man didn't seem to understand the gesture, but Luigi did. He forgot his own pain and exhaustion as he jumped from his place on the floor, wrapping both arms around the goo creature and beginning to sob.

_"Gooigi, I'm so sorry all of this happened to you..."_

Gooigi returned the hug, shaking uncontrollably.

E. Gadd lowered his outstretched arm, "What is wrong with me? Here I am being a scientist when what Gooigi really needed was a little comfort."

Peach joined them in the hug, followed by Mario. Gooigi lay his head on Luigi's shoulder, and it eased his pain a little bit.

_I'm so happy to see you, Luigi. You don't understand. I can't vocalize just how happy I am that you came after me._

"Of course I did." Luigi soothed, "I wasn't gonna just leave you there. You and E. Gadd are family."

_I know, but it's still unfathomable to me that you went inside the Charleston Estate and came out alive with us. I was so sure I would never see you again. I was so scared._

"I know. It's okay." Luigi gave him a squeeze, "I've got you now. You're safe."

He noticed E. Gadd just waiting by the side of the desk with the empty jar, so when Gooigi finally broke the hug, he knelt down to address him, "E. Gadd, how did you miss that Gooigi just needed someone to comfort him?"

"I don't know. I'm not a very affectionate person, and so when you go and teach affection to my science experiments, it leaves me at a bit of a loss. I'm a paranormal scientist. That's all I'm really good for. I'm not good at emotional support."

Luigi eyed the jar in E. Gadd's grip, one hand on the back of his head. E. Gadd was decidedly avoiding his gaze, his glasses reflecting the overhead light in an unnatural way.

Luigi laughed a little to himself, "You know, Gooigi talks about you when he's with us."

That got E. Gadd's attention, "Oh?"

"Yeah. He says that you have a tendency to get too excited about your work, so he brings you water and forces you to take breaks." Luigi stood up straight, stroking his moustache, "He says that you make corny jokes under your breath when you're working alone, and that you always make an effort to understand him, even when what he's saying is difficult to keep up with. He also says that you never stop telling him how cool he is, and you say things like, 'If only I was younger and had more hair, we would make the perfect team!'"

E. Gadd's smile regained its vigor, but it was a softer smile than Luigi was used to seeing on him.

Luigi shrugged, his palms facing up, "That sounds like emotional support to me. You don't have to hug someone to show that you care."

E. Gadd looked up at him, "Oh hohoho! Luigi, my boy, if you're trying to cheer me up, it's worked! Does he really speak so highly of me?"

"Why don't you ask him yourself?"

Gooigi caught his eye, then he nodded.

"Oh, Gooigi! I'm glad you don't think of me as callous!"

Gooigi shook his head, waving his hand in a _"don't worry about it"_ fashion.

"Well, that's a relief." E. Gadd held out the jar again, "Now, I swear I'm almost done. Are you feeling a little better?"

Gooigi clung to Luigi's sleeve.

"Hey, Gooigi. It's okay." Luigi ran a thumb across his cheek, "It's okay. Once E. Gadd is done, you'll feel a lot better. Okay?"

Gooigi held his hands, moving them away from his face. He slumped over before dissolving into a liquid and entering the jar.

"Perfect." E. Gadd set the jar on the desk, taking a bottle of solution and an eyedropper from the top drawer, "Now, I'd better not overdo this. Luigi, stay out of his head."

"You don't have to tell me that."

E. Gadd squeezed a single drop of solution onto Gooigi, then he retrieved a stirring stick and stirred the drop into the liquid goo. The lumps went away slightly, but it needed about two or three more drops to become uniform once again. As soon as the liquid was a proper liquid, E. Gadd poured the mixture onto the floor and Gooigi reformed.

"Alright." E. Gadd set the jar aside, "How do you feel?"

Gooigi stretched his arms in the air, then he twisted his torso back and forth. When he did this with no pain, he hopped a few times and gave them two thumbs' up.

"Excellent!" E. Gadd returned to his chair, "Well, your goal was to save your friends, right, Luigi? What do you want to do now?"

Luigi scratched his head, messing with his already messy hair, "I didn't think this far ahead, but we probably have to go back."

"Ah yes. That scientist isn't going to stop just because she got hit with a flashlight."

Peach crossed her arms, "I only did it once, and it was totally fair!"

Mario covered one side of his mouth, "She's not too fond of violence."

"I can tell." E. Gadd began to type, "I'm not sure exactly what this creep is trying to accomplish with her experiments on Gooigi without her notes, but from what I overheard while we were there, well...here's what I know." he paused to face the group, "Many things she was trying to do centered around Luigi and Gooigi. This doesn't surprise me, as telepathic links between living goo and humans has so far been unheard of. Any scientist would want to study it, in fact her attempts at overshadowing may also be an experiment in the link. However, just as heavily, she mentioned Mario, even though in this particular experiment at least, he has no relevance. Mario doesn't have a link with either of you."

He faced his computer screen again, seemingly lost in thought.

Gooigi's thoughts nudged Luigi's mind, _I know what she wants to attempt. I was in her lab, remember? I heard everything._

Luigi glanced at him, and Gooigi wrung his hands together.

"Gooigi?" Luigi said, "If you have more information, you should let us know."

E. Gadd turned his chair, "You know, Gooigi? Go on, then. Enlighten us."

Gooigi internally said to his companion, _I don't know how to communicate this well. May I borrow your body?_

Luigi started, "Yeah, sure, just give me a second." he didn't mind Gooigi taking over his body, but it was weird for him because it felt crowded. After a few moments, he sighed, "Okay, go ahead."

Mario cocked his head, "Go ahead for what?"

Gooigi recalled to the Poltergust G-00 before saturating Luigi's mind. Luigi couldn't help the shock of panic whenever it happened, but Gooigi was careful with him, skirting around his thoughts to take control of his body and nothing else.

"Whoa." Gooigi said, "I forgot how many more colors you can see than me."

"Gooigi? Is that you?" Mario spun him to look him in the eye.

"Hey, bro. I know, we've never spoken this way before. My voice isn't easy to use. Don't worry, Luigi is still here."

He didn't look or sound any different, but his mannerisms were easily distinct from Luigi's. He moved a little stiffly, and his movements were much more subdued than Luigi's animated personality allowed for. He was also more soft-spoken, and used more formal language than Luigi.

Gooigi's smile fell, and he rubbed Luigi's neck in his body, "Well, when I was in that jar in the lab, the scientist kept going over her notes out loud, not that I wanted to hear what she had to say. She kept talking about the three of us in such a disturbing way, like someone preparing to dissect a frog, and she said a lot of things I didn't quite understand, but one thing she did say was that if a telepathic link was possible between a goo and a person, maybe one was possible between two people as well."

E. Gadd's face paled, "Wait. If she's trying to establish a link between two human test subjects..."

Luigi regained control, "Hold on. Is the scientist trying to link me and Mario?"

E. Gadd numbly turned to Gooigi as he reformed, rubbing his hands together absentmindedly.

Luigi opened his mouth as he thought, "That's actually kinda cool."

"No, it's not _'kinda cool!'"_ E. Gadd swayed like a bobblehead, "The only reason a link between you and Gooigi can work is because goo is intended to link with other living things! You notice how your link with Gooigi is sometimes chaotic and uncontrollable from your end? That's because people can't handle a link like that! If you were to form that link with Mario, you would be trapped in each other's heads forever! _With no way out!"_

Luigi's heart lurched, and he locked eyes with Mario, who was equally unsettled.

"Um...and you know that because...?"

"The evidence points to it, obviously." E. Gadd returned his attention to the computer, "Remember how hard it was for you to control your link at first? Gooigi was completely overwhelmed by your emotions because you didn't know how to hold back. You eventually got the hang of it for the most part, but that's because the telepathic link thing comes naturally to him, so he was able to help you out. Mario doesn't have that luxury. If this scientist truly wishes to form a goo-like link between you...it will not end well."

The information hung in the air until E. Gadd finished typing, resting his hands on the desk in front of him.

"Of course, this is just speculation." he pushed his glasses up his nose as he faced Luigi, "But do you really want to risk it?"

Luigi got goosebumps as he slowly shook his head.

"That's what I thought." E. Gadd pushed away from the desk, "Shady!"

"What's up?"

"Establish the perimeter, will you?"

"Yessir!"

Powder and Umbra left too, as well as other ghosts that had been lingering nearby. Pretty soon, it was just the five of them.

"Luigi." E. Gadd said, "It's getting late. Do you want to go home, or would you feel safer here?"

Luigi sharply inhaled, "One second."

He hugged Peach, his ear to her chest. She reciprocated, delicately running her fingers over the bump on his head.

"Mm..." Luigi melted into the touch, "I don't know. I need to go home if I want to fix the damage caused by that scientist, but I might come back in the evening to spend the night."

"Alright, well, you've got a few hours to figure that out." E. Gadd fired up the Pixelator, "Call me if you need anything."

Luigi was still holding Peach close when he was pixelated and disappeared, "Will do."

***


	7. Chapter 7

Luigi watched as the sun set over the horizon. He had spent two hours getting the house back into some semblance of an acceptable condition, though the kitchen tile would have to be replaced, as well as most of the furniture, and a bunch of books and picture frames, and a million other things that were just giving him a headache trying to think about. He was sore, frustrated, and exhausted.

He turned his attention back to the mug in his hands. He was seated at an outside table at the Toad Town cafe. Mario had taken over the project of fixing the house, practically begging Luigi to give it up after all he'd been through, so Luigi had left the house to try and clear his head.

Clearly, it wasn't working. Luigi set aside the hot chocolate that had long since gone cold. It was like his proverbial strings were stretched thin. When did he start feeling so stressed? He wasn't even scared anymore. He was just...burnt out.

Peach sat across from him, but he didn't even look up.

"Luigi?" she took his hand, "Are you okay?"

Luigi gently squeezed her hand, "I don't know. I'm really tired right now."

Peach kneaded her thumb into the back of his hand, "Tired like how?"

"Just...tired. In every way. I want to scream, but I also want to sleep. I want to get rid of this tight feeling in my chest, but I don't know how, and it's...it's so...!"

He hit his head against the table, settling it in the crook of his elbow.

_"...stressful..."_

Peach watched him wallow for a bit before she stood up and moved to his side. She scooped him up into her arms and carried him away.

"Huh?" Luigi grabbed her sleeve to prevent himself from falling, "What are you-!?"

"Hush. Mario's done with the house. I'm taking you home."

He wasn't sure what she was up to, but he didn't protest as she brought him all the way back to the brothers' house. Mario let her in, snickering behind his hand as he guided the construction toads from the house.

Peach sat in Luigi's favorite armchair, sitting him in her lap and tucking him against the side of her body.

"Um, Peach, I don't know if..."

"Hush." she took his hand, "You're stressed. Just relax, okay?"

He hadn't realized how physically tense he was until she said that. He forced his muscles to relax, and he settled against her, his eyes closing with his arms around her. She twisted his hair between her fingers, and he slowly began to feel the stress dissolve away.

He lifted his head to yawn into the back of his hand, "You have no idea how much I needed that."

"You're welcome." Peach let him go, "You ready to leave?"

"Yeah." Luigi slid to the floor, extending his hand to her, "Let's go."

Ghosts tended to suck the light out of certain areas. It was dark even in the middle of the day all across Evershade Valley, so naturally it was even darker at night. Luigi looked out the window once he was back in the lab, finding it to be nearly pitch-black aside from some newer ghosts playing a game in the yard.

Polterpup rammed into his legs, whimpering.

"Aw, hey Pup." Luigi pet him, "Sorry. I don't feel great right now."

Polterpup nudged his side under his arm, and he leaned into the touch gratefully. Polterpup then pushed him towards the door, and he pattered across the floor to his friends.

E. Gadd waved at him from his computer, "Sleep well, son."

Luigi gave a half-hearted nod to acknowledge him before following Gooigi to the foyer and then to the master bedroom. Gooigi had pushed a bunch of furniture from other rooms into his, mostly couches, but there were a couple small beds too. Gooigi retired to his jar, which he'd set on the nightstand to allow another person to use his bed. Pretty soon, the lights were off, and everyone was trying to sleep.

After thirty minutes of spiraling thoughts, Luigi left his bed to wander into the hallway.

The hallway was warm and the lights were on. It confirmed to him that he was alone. He headed to the end of the hallway, pulling down the trap door for the ladder that led up to the attic, then he ascended further to the rooftop, where he sat down and took off his cap to run a hand through his hair. The cool breeze felt nice on his neck, and he closed his eyes as he took in the smell of ectoplasm and autumn leaves.

_Luigi?_

Luigi didn't look up, "Hey, Gooigi."

_What are you doing out here?_ Gooigi sat beside him, _It's not safe for you to be outside by yourself._

"I know, but I can't sleep." Luigi stretched his legs out in front of him, "I'm too restless."

_I can tell._ Gooigi brought his knees to his chest, _You kept me awake with your anxious thoughts._

"Oh. I'm sorry."

_No worries. I have my own thoughts to deal with._

Luigi glanced up at that. Gooigi was averting his gaze. He wasn't entirely sure, but it seemed like Gooigi's eyes were glazed over even more than usual, almost like they were haunted.

"Gooigi..." Luigi draped an arm over his shoulders, "I know you probably don't want to think about it, but...did The Scientist torture you too badly?"

Gooigi huddled close to him, _You don't know the half of it. I was in agony. She kept talking about her plans as if I actually cared. She shared her notes with me, even things she said she wasn't planning on actually testing. I tried not to listen. I tried to dissociate hoping it would help. I can't close my eyes without seeing the lab again. I kept worrying myself sick over what she might do if she caught you. Goodness, Luigi...you don't know how awful I feel right now._

Luigi felt through the link, "Well, I do have some idea. I'm sorry, Gooigi."

Gooigi rested his hand on Luigi's, leaning further into the comfort he was offering.

_Luigi...I can't believe myself. I'm so stupid._ he trembled, choking on something that didn't really exist, _I thought I could handle it. I thought I would be alright. I thought I could do it. How could I let myself become a prisoner so easily?_

Luigi exhaled slowly, giving his companion a squeeze, "You're not stupid. It could have happened to anyone. Don't beat yourself up over it."

_You would have been able to do it._

"Not alone."

Gooigi didn't respond. It was obvious to Luigi that he didn't feel comforted at all. Waves of guilt came through their link, and Luigi tried to think of some way to put his mind at ease.

Finally, he sighed heavily, "Did you know that Mario and I weren't supposed to live?"

Gooigi pulled away to look at him incredulously.

"It's true." Luigi shrugged, "When the two of us were being delivered by the stork, we were attacked and almost died before we had even made it to our parents. Luckily, our friend Yoshi saved us and got us back to the stork, but it accidentally delivered us to the wrong house, so we were attacked again and...well, it's a long story, but the gist of it is that for all intents and purposes, the two of us shouldn't be alive right now. Yet, here we are."

Gooigi stared at him with wide eyes, _Are you joking?_

"Nope. Yoshi, Mama, and Papa told us all about it. Plus, Kamek won't let us forget how slighted he was that he failed to kill us twice when we were newborns."

_How heartless._

"You're telling me."

A group of ghosts flew by, chasing each other like they were in the throes of some chaotic game of tag. The two brothers sat in companionable silence until Gooigi returned to Luigi's embrace.

_Why did you tell me this?_

"I just wanted to prove to you that getting hurt isn't your fault. Mario and I could have easily taken out Kamek if that happened today, but we were babies at the time. Yoshi had to rescue us. If you couldn't save E. Gadd alone, then neither could I. If Peach and Mario hadn't been in that estate with me, I guarantee this story would have ended differently."

Gooigi wrapped an arm around him, _I see. Thank you._

"No problem." Luigi noticed the lack of feelings through the link, "Hey, I'm sorry you feel awful. Whenever we go back, you don't have to come with us."

Gooigi was overwhelmed by fear, _No! I...you can't go in there without me! I can't...I can't lose you, don't...I can't let you...!_

"Hey, Gooigi! It's okay!" Luigi held him closer, "Hush. It's okay. I'll have my friends with me. Besides, if you aren't there, it might be harder for that crazy ghost to overshadow me."

_Luigi..._

"Hey, listen. I mean it." Luigi stroked the back of Gooigi's head, "I can tell that you're terrified. You don't have to go. We can manage without you. It's okay."

It didn't seem to cheer him up much, but Gooigi internally thanked him anyway.

It was unusual for Gooigi to be so unsure of himself. Luigi remembered first meeting him, seeing those glassy eyes and blank expression, assuming there was nothing behind them to respond with. Luigi was almost used to trauma by now, but Gooigi was less than a year old. Even though he wasn't as sensitive as Luigi, it was no wonder he was having such a hard time.

The wind picked up, and Luigi shivered, replacing his cap before it could fly away, "Let's go back inside. Maybe we can sleep now."

When they entered the bedroom again, Luigi quietly closed the door behind them and headed back to the bed where he'd been attempting to sleep before.

_Luigi, wait._

Luigi paused to turn back towards him. Gooigi held his jar out for him to take. Once he did, he recalled to it.

Luigi smiled, shaking his head as he twisted the cap on the jar closed and climbed under the covers. Holding the jar tight to his chest, he curled up on his side and finally found peace in the abyss of sleep.

***


	8. Chapter 8

Luigi entered the front door of the estate, Shady was floating back and forth between the walls, phasing out occasionally before coming back in. Luigi rubbed his eyes, still sleepy from his racing thoughts keeping him up. Gooigi wasn't with him, but Mario and Peach were, and Powder and Umbra were nearby too.

Luigi reached out a wavering arm, "Shady?"

"Oh! Hey, Luigi." Shady let out a huff of a laugh, "I didn't see you there. None of us can get into the basement, and according to E. Gadd's drones, the lab downstairs is locked.

"Can't you find the key?"

"What do you think we've been looking for, genius?" Shady put a hand on her hip, the other to her mouth, "If we can't find what we're looking for, then it's likely we simply aren't welcome here."

Luigi deflated, "Of course. That creep is probably waiting for me."

"We do have a lead, though." Shady waved him over, heading to the hallway when he began to follow, "We ran into that rapscallion on the second floor. Uncle Lachlan, Victoria said. He had a key, and it might be the same one for the lab."

"Nice." Luigi entered the hallway, his flashlight falling over the broken staircase.

"I bet you're wondering how you can get to the second floor." Shady rubbed her hands together deviously, "Well, allow me to demonstrate..."

She put two fingers in her mouth, letting loose a loud whistle. A cluster of illusion orbs appeared in single file, and Shady waved her arms, magically leading them to the staircase and allowing them to form a controlled illusion.

The staircase was fully restored, and Luigi whistled, impressed, "I didn't know you could do that."

"Boos aren't the only ones that can create illusions." Shady floated up to the second floor, "It's nice to finally be able to help."

Luigi climbed the stairs, delighted that they didn't bend or creak, "Thanks, Shady. How come you never did this during the Dark Moon crisis?"

"Because I need to draw on the Dark Moon's power in order to summon those illusions. I couldn't do that when only King Boo had access to the shards." Shady phased through one of the doors, and Luigi tried to follow, but it was locked.

"Shady?"

"Oh. Locked?" Shady flew over his head across the hall, "Figures. _This_ one should be unlocked."

Luigi tried the next door, and it opened with little resistance, "Cool."

This room was some kind of study, with desks covered in paper and charcoal pencils, a fainting couch, an easel with an old canvas and various tubs of paint, all in the same gothic style as most of the rest of the house. The difference was that the floor in this room had a massive hole in it that covered half of the available floor space, and it was so deep that Luigi didn't see the bottom of it.

"Oh. That." Shady pulled him away from the chasm, "Yep."

"Shady, please don't tell me that hole goes on forever."

Shady scratched her head, "Uhhh..."

"Nevermind." Luigi spotted the key on the wall at the other side of the room, "Any chance that key will work on the lab?"

"I don't know." Shady glanced into the chasm, "Let me see if I can grab it."

Shady flew over the hole, reaching out to take the key. An arch of electricity hit her before she'd even touched it, "Ow!"

Luigi knelt by the edge, "Are you okay, Shady!?"

"Y-yeah..." Shady waved her hand to dispel the pain, "Jeez, it's like this whole house is ghost proof!"

Luigi looked between the key and the side of the room, which appeared sturdy enough to walk on, as the floorboards were running lengthwise across it. He shrugged out of the Poltergust, setting it down next to the easel.

"Uh, Luigi?" Shady blocked his path, "What do you think you're doing?"

"Just trust me on this." he sidestepped around her, carefully tiptoeing towards the narrow path.

"Luigi, stop! If you fall, I don't think I'll be able to catch you!" Shady made to leave, "Just hold on! I'll call one of the hammers, I'm sure they'd be happy to carry you across!"

"No." Luigi scolded, "You weren't even close to that key when it hurt you. Let me handle this."

Mario stopped him just before the path, "Luigi, don't. I can get that key for you. You don't need to do everything by yourself."

"But what if you fall?"

"Luigi, you're my twin brother." Mario tugged on his arm, "Please. It's not a big deal. You've already done so much, let me take over, okay?"

Luigi was about to keep arguing, but instead he relented with a long sigh, _"Mi dispiace. Hai ragione._ Please be careful."

"I will."

Mario pressed his back to the wall, stepping forward one foot at a time as he sidled across the room. Luigi covered his face, watching him between his fingers while Peach let out a panicked, "Careful, Mario!" Mario took step after steady step, steeling himself as he made it to the end and stepped out on the other side.

"Whew." Luigi wiped the sweat from his brow.

"I'm fine, bro." Mario took the key, stuffing it in his pocket before sidling back the way he had come, "Got it!"

"Awesome." Luigi retrieved his Poltergust, stopping Mario to give him a hug, "Thanks, bro. No daredevil stunts, okay?"

"Yeah. Okay."

Mario unlocked the previous door, and Shady phased through it as they entered.

This room looked to be the master bedroom. It was surprisingly intact given the state of the other room, but the bed didn't have a mattress on it, and the frame was caved in beneath a sheer black canopy. There was no carpet in this room, although it still sported the same black wallpaper as every other room aside from the kitchen where Stefan was hiding.

Luigi's flashlight beam swept over the ceiling, falling over a spider that quickly scurried away. Luigi's spine prickled.

Shady made it to the end of the room before she turned invisible, a flying hatstand just grazing past her head.

"AAAGHAAAAHH!" Luigi ducked, and Mario caught the hatstand behind him.

"I'm surprised you came back, plumber!" Lachlan sneered, "Most people would rather keep their lives!"

Luigi flashed the strobulb, but Lachlan had already disappeared. He stood back-to-back with Mario and Peach as Lachlan split himself into four clones, spiraling around them as they jeered in unison.

"You know, the chances of getting out of here once are astronomical! Good luck escaping twice!"

Luigi looked at each clone as they passed by, but they were completely identical. There must be some way to tell them apart! If he caught a clone in the vacuum, the real Lachlan could just make more! Thinking fast, he nudged Peach with his elbow, "Peach! The dark light!"

She switched it on. Sure enough, three of the Lachlans turned invisible under the light, but one of them stood out more. When that ghost passed by him, he flashed the strobulb and Lachlan entered the struggle.

"Hey! You're not supposed to do that! Let me go!"

"Not a chance!" Luigi dug his heels into the floor as he was dragged.

He stumbled, falling forward and only barely managing to keep his grip on the trigger. He pushed his hat up from where it had fallen over his face, trying to yank back, but Lachlan was relentless. He saw his chance to throw Luigi off, so he flicked his tail, sending Luigi crashing into the wall. That was when he finally let go, falling to a crumpled heap on the floor as the ghost disappeared.

"Luigi!" Mario ran to him, yanking him to his feet.

Luigi gasped for air, catching himself on Mario's sleeve as he caught him, "I'm fine." he picked up the nozzle and switched it back to the flashlight, "I almost had him, though! That's so frustrating!"

Lachlan did the swirling clone thing again, and Luigi picked out which one of them was real, just like last time. This time, though, as soon as he started to pull back with the vacuum, Mario wrapped his arms around him, grasping the controls over Luigi's hands and helping hold him in place. Peach did the same thing, and Lachlan rapidly lost health as their combined strength held them all in place.

"NO! YOU CAN'T DO THIS! LET ME GO!"

Luigi's arms cried out in protest, but he refused to stop fighting.

"STOP! NO! _NOOO!!!"_

Lachlan vanished into the depths of the Poltergust, and the lights came back on.

"Ugh!" Luigi fell to his knees, clutching his strained forearm as adrenaline pumped through him rapidly.

"Are you okay?" Mario gave him a once-over, "You hit that wall pretty hard."

"Yeah, I'm sure I'll feel that for weeks." Luigi let his hands fall to the floor.

Mario touched his shoulder, making him wince, "You should rest for a bit, at least. Does it hurt too badly?"

Luigi felt along his shoulder and then his back where he'd hit the wall. He discovered that the Poltergust had dug into his opposite side when he'd crashed, creating an awful bruise. He discovered this because when he gave it an experimental push, the air wheezed out of his lungs like a deflating balloon, "Ow..."

"Okay, that's enough." Mario took the Poltergust off of his shoulders, "Lay down."

He did, though it was in a collapsed heap. He rolled onto his back, carefully avoiding laying on the bruises.

He felt the presence of more ghosts enter the room, but it was just Polterpup and Shady. Polterpup hovered over him, giving his cheek a nudge, and Luigi lifted an arm to pet him.

"Sorry, Luigi." Shady rubbed her arm in shame, "None of us can help you much when you're using the Poltergust. We're terrified of it."

"Hey, no worries." Luigi let his arm fall and Polterpup rested his head on Luigi's chest, "If I were a ghost, I'd be afraid of the Poltergust, too."

Shady offered a soft smile, "Thanks. I wish we could be more help."

"No, you've been great." Luigi assured, "Don't beat yourself up over it."

It was in this moment that Luigi registered a faint humming. It sounded familiar, but he couldn't quite place it. It was a faraway sound, but it was quickly coming closer.

Evidently, Mario recognized it sooner than him, "Sit up! Come on! Let's go!"

Luigi sat upright, "What, why? What's wrong?"

Mario pulled him to his feet as he snatched up the Poltergust, "Run!"

Peach recognized the sound of turbines just as Luigi realized what he was hearing. The three of them ran down the stairs as what was left of the roof was torn off.

Peach gasped, "Bowser!"

"You won't get away from me this time, your highness!" Bowser stood atop the biggest airship in the fleet, "Just hold still like a good little prisoner!"

Mario stood in front of her protectively.

"Guys!" Shady tried to join them, but Bowser's fleet shone a bright light on her, and she covered her eyes as she vanished.

"Shady!" Luigi looked between where she had disappeared to his brother, and his princess.

He didn't have the strength to fight like he usually did. Just the exertion it took to run down the stairs had been physically taxing. The fleet surrounded them, making escape improbable, but Luigi was still thinking of some way out. There had to be something, right?

A robotic cage came down, propelled by helicopter blades. As soon as he saw it, he reacted without thinking. He shoved Peach out of its path, and the cage came crashing down over him.

"Luigi!" Peach tried to run to him, but the cage was already flying away.

Luigi was stuck to the swaying floor of the cage, ramming into the bars several times until blackness overcame him, and he just caught the light of the Dark Moon glowing brilliantly in the sky.

***


	9. Chapter 9

Luigi's head was swimming as he opened his eyes. Surely that had been a dream. Bowser wouldn't invade Evershade Valley. It had too many ghosts that weren't on his side. Was he really so desperate for Peach that he would invade another kingdom's territory?

However, upon opening his eyes to pure concrete, he realized that Bowser might have simply lost his marbles somewhere along the way.

Turning his head slightly, he saw through a curtain of tears that he was in a dark dungeon with cells all along the wall. In the cell next to him, he saw a purple haze with a white blob in the middle. He rubbed his eyes, trying to see better, but nothing really came into focus at first. He grunted, letting out a groan of pain. He'd hit his new bruise on the bars of the cage and it _hurt._

"Ow ow ow ow..." Luigi sucked in a breath of air, wrapping an arm around his torso as he curled up on his side.

"Yeah, that's why it's great to not have a corporeal body. Pain isn't nearly as crippling."

Luigi forced himself onto his knees. The white blob in his vision had been none other than King Boo!

Luigi pointed an accusatory finger at him, "King Boo!"

"Don't bother. We're not enemies anymore, remember?"

Luigi eyed the sidelong glance he was given, "Oh yeah." he fell back onto his side, "Oof, my side is killing me..."

"It's doing a better job than I ever did, then."

"Have a little sympathy for your not-enemy."

"Who's that? Never heard of her."

Luigi rolled his eyes, "Okay, how about this; Do you know where we are?"

"Bowser's castle. Obviously." King Boo's shadowed eyes glared at him, "Couldn't you tell just by looking at it?"

"Maybe; If I could see anything."

"Oh, that's right. You actually need light to be able to see." King Boo crossed his stubby arms, "Figures."

Luigi sighed, rolling towards the bars of the cage and holding them tightly to hoist himself to his feet. He doubled over as his side screamed at him, and his arms shook as they grasped the bars. When he'd finally successfully stood up, he gingerly touched his injury, biting the inside of his cheek to keep from crying out.

"Are you seriously hurt?" King Boo hovered closer to the wall of his confinement, "What happened?"

Luigi focused on his breathing before he answered, "Let's just say you're not the most menacing ghost I've ever fought."

"Hey! I resent that remark! I'm terrifying!"

"Sure you are, but how many times have you given me a bruised rib cage?"

He didn't answer.

Luigi tried to tug the door of his cell, but it was locked up tight, "Of course. Come on, Luigi, think! How can you get out of this?"

King Boo frowned in annoyance, "Do you really think you can get yourself out of this?"

"How come you aren't just phasing through the bars?"

"Why do you think, idiot!? This containment field is in the way!"

The purple haze Luigi had seen before surrounded each bar around King Boo's cage. Well, at least that explained one thing.

"No, I can do this." Luigi massaged his forehead, "I can't just give up. I'll figure something out."

"Hey genius, have you ever wondered why your princess could never escape by herself? I'll give you three guesses."

"Don't patronize me."

"Don't say stupid things."

Luigi felt a stab through his injury, gasping as he crumpled to the floor. Just holding himself upright was proving to be painful. He had a thought that maybe Peach would come to rescue him, and he felt himself swooning at the prospect, though it was quickly cut off by another painful groan.

"Yeesh. You're not looking so good."

"Shut up." Luigi rolled onto his stomach, willing the pain to ease even slightly. It didn't.

"Just give it up. You'll only hurt yourself worse."

Luigi scowled, "If you think I'm gonna just sit here and do nothing, you're sorely mistaken. Surely you know me better than that."

King Boo turned his back to him, "Whatever. Just don't expect any help from me."

When the pain didn't go away at all, Luigi just opted to ignore it, standing once again to grasp the bars. Feeling along the outside, his hands brushed over the lock, and he felt around it as he tried to figure out what it would take to get it open.

He straightened his hat, his fist tightening around the bar, "There has to be a way."

King Boo glanced over at him.

"Is this what it feels like?" he carefully sat down, the pain of his bruises making tears form in his eyes, "Ugh! I don't want to do nothing! I can't..."

He'd already been saved by Mario enough times to feel completely useless. Every time he failed, it cut something deep inside him. He'd been relying on others basically his whole life, but that didn't mean he was completely helpless. Why did he still find himself consumed by these feelings of inadequacy?

He rolled onto his side, crying into his hands. Maybe he really was stuck here until he was found.

King Boo huffed angrily, "Luigi, will you cut it out?"

He barely heard him. Why did it hurt so much? People appreciated him, he was a hero in his own right, but his heart seemed to have other ideas. Maybe healing from years of being overshadowed by others was going to be harder than he thought.

"Stop crying!" King Boo hit his body against the magical bars, "If you stop crying, I'll help you escape!"

Luigi looked up, "You will? How?"

"Don't make me regret it!" King Boo gestured to the purple barrier that trapped him, "Listen, a barrier like this can be overpowered by a physical presence, so if you grab it and pull on it hard enough, it should short-circuit long enough for me to phase through!"

Luigi touched the barrier. The electricity arched off his fingertips, but it didn't hurt, "How hard do I have to pull it?"

"As hard as you can!"

Luigi gulped. He took the barrier in his fist and yanked on it. It didn't budge, but his shoulder blade sure felt his effort, "Ow!"

"Come on! I know you can pull harder than that!"

"Look, this is the same action I always do with the Poltergust, and I've been doing it for ages now!" Luigi tried to tug harder, but his arms felt weak, "Ugh! It hurts!"

"You can do it, you moron! I've been on the end of your vacuum enough to know that!"

"It really hurts, King Boo! You don't understand!"

"Would you rather wait here for someone to rescue you!?"

Luigi grit his teeth, his fist tightening further. He steeled himself, bracing against the floor with one foot on the bars, both hands around the barrier. He inhaled, held it, then he yanked backwards with every ounce of strength he had left.

"AAAAAAAHHH!" Luigi flew backwards as the barrier shattered, hitting his head on the concrete floor and seeing stars. He was so lost in agony he nearly blacked out, and he worried for one horrific second that it hadn't even worked.

Cold arms lifted him from the ground and he whimpered, "Hey hey, plumber. It's fine. I'll get you out of here."

King Boo had already unlocked his cell with the key down the hall, so he carried Luigi out of the dungeon, trying to transfer some magic to him to at least get him aware again. He set Luigi on his feet in the hallway, holding him up until he regained his balance.

"Hey." Luigi panted, "You were right."

King Boo held his shoulder, "What happened to you to put you in so much pain?"

Luigi was grateful for the support, even if it was coming from an unlikely source, "It's a long story, but long story short, I was slammed multiple times into a wall."

"Yikes." King Boo urged him forward, "Well, let's go. Your princess and your brother are probably looking for you."

The thought of seeing them again filled him with joy, "Thanks, King Boo. Imagine us! Unlikely allies!"

"Yeah yeah, don't push it."

After some trekking through the halls, familiar footsteps came closer, and Luigi broke out into a run.

Mario and Peach came around the corner, "Luigi!"

"Mario! Peach!" Luigi threw himself into their arms, "I'm so happy to see you!"

Peach let go first, "King Boo!"

"Ah! Wait!" Luigi caught the sleeve of her sweater, "He helped me escape. We're leaving together."

Peach looked between them before she nodded, "Okay. Follow me."

The four of them made it out of the castle in record time, and once they had, Luigi suddenly found himself wishing he wasn't so sore, because the whole area outside was in chaos, with Bowser enemies and toads alike clashing in battle. How his companions had managed to get through it was beyond him, but he didn't question it as he hurried to keep up with them.

Eventually, his lungs were stubbornly oxygen-deprived, "Guys! Wait up!"

"Luigi?" Mario held him up as he breathed heavily, his vision filled with static.

"I can't..." Luigi inhaled and exhaled rapidly, "...too much...hurts..."

Mario took him to the side, "Peach, take King Boo back to the lab. We'll catch up soon."

Peach seemed doubtful, but she hurried along without protest, King Boo trailing behind her.

"Luigi, what happened? Where does it hurt?"

Luigi cringed as he touched his side, and Mario held that hand above the injury.

"Bruised?"

"I think."

"Okay, just breathe. You'll be fine." Mario retrieved a red mushroom from his pocket, holding it up until Luigi took a bite. The pain eased as he ate, and he chomped the rest of it down with no complaints.

Once Luigi felt he could breathe again, he held Mario's hands, "You came for me."

"Yes, of course I did." Mario gave Luigi's hands a squeeze, "Why wouldn't I have?"

Now that the pain was easing, Luigi could feel the full-force of his heavy heart. His sorrow. Was this the straw that broke the camel's back? He didn't know, but what he did know was that the dam had broken, and the tears were falling.

"Luigi?" Mario brushed one of the tears away with his thumb, "Why are you crying?"

_"I don't know..."_ he mumbled miserably, _"I just, it's all too much and...I don't know!"_

Mario wrapped his arms around him, "Luigi, it's okay. Do you hear me? You're going to be okay. I've got you now. Hush."

Luigi leaned into him, his arms tucked close to his body. Why did this hurt so much? Where had this come from? He didn't think he was so close to losing his mind, and yet he couldn't hold anything back. The tears cascaded down his face, his sniffles and quiet sobs all that could be heard in their own little bubble, away from the battle that continued around them.

When Luigi felt he had control again, he pulled away, wiping the tears from his eyes, "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." Mario offered a patient smile, "You always do this for me."

Luigi matched his smile, "Yeah, you're right. I guess I just feel really useless right now."

"You're never useless. Don't ever say that." Mario gently shook him, "You're not a tool to be used. You are a person. You have worth no matter how much you contribute. You could sit out on every adventure and still be the same Luigi on the inside, and honestly, that's more than enough."

Luigi laughed, "Thanks, Mario. I tend to hope it's enough to be me."

"Don't worry. You're doing just fine." Mario gave him one more hug before pulling him to his feet, "Can you keep going now?"

Luigi stumbled, "Ah, maybe. Just stay close in case I fall."

"No problem."

Mario led him to a pixelation screen nearby, and they both disappeared through it.

***

When Luigi emerged in the lab, he landed on his feet, which was rare for him, but Mario landed a few feet away in a box of blueprints. Luigi reached for his hand, helping him to his feet.

"Whew. Thanks."

"No problem." Luigi eyed who was in the lab. E. Gadd, who lept from his chair, Gooigi, Peach and King Boo, and a ghost that Luigi didn't recognize lying on the bench.

Gooigi grabbed him in a massive, gooy hug, and Luigi was hit with his relief and love through the link.

"Luigi!" E. Gadd beamed at him, "It's so good to see you again! Your princess informed me of how King Boo was the one who rescued you!"

Luigi released Gooigi only to receive another crushing hug from Peach, "Ah, well, we rescued each other, really."

Peach kissed his head, "You weren't waiting in there too long, were you?"

Luigi smiled, taking the hand that cradled his cheek, "I'm fine. I was unconscious for a lot of it, but seeing you again is like a breath of fresh air."

King Boo scoffed, "That's the cheesiest thing I've ever heard."

"Shut up. You tried to kill me no less than four times."

"Not _kill_ you! Yeesh, you're so dramatic!"

It was then Luigi's eyes landed on the ghost on the bench. She was a greenie, but colored a sickly shade of red. Her face was scrunched up as if in pain, and when Luigi reached his arm out towards her, she radiated heat, like she was running a fever.

She flinched away from him, "Ah. Don't hurt me."

He recognized that voice. His mouth dropped open, "Shady!?"

She took another look at him, "Luigi? Is that you?"

E. Gadd placed a hand on her forehead, "There's a reason ghosts don't like the light; It forces them to stay in a corporeal form. If the light is bright enough, it can even push their atoms out of place, leading to illness."

Mario was disturbed, "Wait, is that what happens when we shine spotlights on boos?"

"That's right. Just like normal enemies, they will be forced to vanish long enough to recover." E. Gadd fiddled with the collar on his lab coat, "Unfortunately, there is no way to speed up this process. She will simply have to wait it out."

Luigi took her hand, which was almost hot enough to create a sauna, "Shady, I'm so sorry."

Shady sighed, "No worries. It's not as horrible as it looks. I can handle it."

That didn't put his mind at ease, but it did make him angry, "Why did Bowser think it was a good idea to barge into the Charleston Estate? Why? What possible benefit could he have gained from that that outweighed the massive detractions?"

"I hate to break it to you," Mario said, "But Bowser's pretty dense."

"Yeah. He is." Luigi agreed, "But that doesn't mean he's a total idiot. There must have been some reason. Maybe he didn't recognize just how dangerous it would be?"

"He _is_ pretty theatrical."

"Guys." Peach stood between them, "It doesn't really matter why he did it, the fact is that he carelessly and needlessly put a lot of people in danger, including me." she crossed her arms, "So what do we do now?"

Luigi gave a heavy sigh, "Can I have another kiss?"

Peach stooped to his height, and he softly kissed her lips.

"Mm." Luigi broke away with both hands cradling his face, "How did I get so lucky?"

Peach smiled at him, brushing a stray hair behind his ear, "I could ask the same thing."

Now that Luigi's anxiety had been quelled, he tried to think about their conundrum more rationally, "Well, if Bowser is going to assert himself as a bigger problem than The Scientist, we may be forced to stop him first."

"But neglecting The Scientist is a bad idea!" E. Gadd headed back to his computer, "Remember what we said about her? She's going to come after you!"

"But what choice do we have!?" Luigi lamented, "No matter what we do, we'll either end up split between them or constantly trying to outrun the other!"

Nobody had an answer for him, but Gooigi did approach him to place a hand on his shoulder.

_Luigi, are you alright? Did Bowser hurt you?_

Luigi's expression softened, "No, he didn't hurt me. Well, not on purpose anyway. You didn't...uh...feel anything through our link while I was in there, did you?"

_No, I was too far away, but the fact you thought to ask me that worries me._

"I'm fine now." Luigi tried to assure him as well as himself, "I'm fine."

Gooigi glared at him, _I don't believe you._

That declaration bounced around in his head for a long time. Of course Gooigi wouldn't believe him. Why would he? He had a direct link to Luigi's mind. Even if he didn't, Luigi was downcast on the outside. His head hung, his eyes sunken in, his knees shaking from the effort of holding him upright. Anyone could see exactly what he was thinking, link or not.

"Luigi..." Peach tilted his chin up to meet her gaze, "What happened in there?"

Luigi felt a strong urge to look away, but instead he forced himself to gaze into her eyes. While he knew himself and Mario had eyes bright like the midday sky, Peach's eyes mirrored them in a deep ocean, layered like the depths from the shoreline to the darkest coral reefs. There was so much that even after 32 years of being alive, he knew there were many things he still had yet to understand.

Luigi felt his lip quiver as he answered her question, "I became a helpless prisoner."

Without another word, Peach held him in a tight hug, and he reciprocated gratefully. He didn't know how, but saying that out loud made him feel so much worse.

"Luigi, you need to rest." she told him, "And I don't just mean sleep, I mean take a break from all this anguish. Please. Stop putting so much pressure on yourself. I love you."

He trembled in her arms, "I love you too."

Mario pulled up a chair for him, "I know how you feel. I remember feeling powerless the first time I got captured by King Boo."

"I'm still here, you know."

"Tough luck!"

Peach held Luigi's hands, "And I remember how much of a burden I feel like whenever Bowser kidnaps me and you boys are forced to come rescue me. You're not alone."

Luigi smiled through his tears, "Thanks, but that's not the only reason I'm upset."

"Then why are you upset, Luigi?"

Luigi shrugged, "I just wish Bowser would mind his own business for once. I wish The Scientist would back off. I wish Gooigi didn't have to suffer. I wish I didn't need to rely on my ex-worst enemy to get myself out of a bind because my body hurts like it went through a steam roller."

Peach lifted both hands to stroke his face, and he closed his eyes as the touch soothed him.

"Like I said, you need a break." Peach rested her nose against his, "A _real_ one."

Luigi closed his eyes, "Yeah. I guess you're right. Will you stay with me?"

"Of course."

Luigi found a place on the floor to lie down. His hand found Peach's, and he listened as she began to hum a melody. His thoughts were still spiraling, but her voice allowed him a sweet distraction. Her cool head complimented his explosive emotions, her soft demeanor easy on his frayed nerves.

He still wasn't feeling great, but his family was with him, and for now, that was more than enough.

***


	10. Chapter 10

Luigi's eyes opened to the lab ceiling, and his eyes refocused in the dark. He would have thought he'd feel refreshed after all of that, but for some reason, he felt cold dread settle in his stomach. If he thought he was fine but still felt something off, then that meant...

"Gooigi!" Luigi sat up. Peach was still kneeling beside him, Mario and E. Gadd nearby, "Where's Gooigi!?"

E. Gadd answered, "He went up to his room to try and sleep. Why? Do you-!?"

He didn't wait for the scientist to finish. He bolted from the lab, taking the stairs two at a time until he was at the manor's bedroom.

He knocked on the door, "Gooigi? Can I come in?"

He felt hesitancy through the link, but once he'd gotten some semblance of affirmation, he twisted the doorknob and slowly crept inside.

Gooigi was curled up on the bed, holding his abdomen as he shivered. Luigi closed the door behind him, sitting beside Gooigi on the edge of the bed and twiddling his thumbs in his lap. He tried to think of something to break the ice, but Gooigi beat him to it.

_I hate her._

Luigi placed a hand on Gooigi's arm, rubbing circles into the goo, "I know. I can't say I'm fond of her either."

_I hate her._ he thought forcefully, his anger almost tangible in the air, _I hate her **I hate her I hate her I HaTe HEr II HAATTE HHERR IIII HHHAATTEEEE HHHHEERRR.**_

"Whoa, Gooigi! It's okay!" Luigi fought against the headache that Gooigi had caused him, "She's not here. I've got you now. You're safe."

Gooigi curled up even tighter, _But I can't stop thinking about what she did. What she said. Luigi, you can't go back to the estate. You can't. Please don't go._

Luigi retracted his hand, "I can't stay away, Gooigi. We need to stop her before more people get hurt."

Luigi expected Gooigi to retaliate on his mind, perhaps with stubbornness or more fear and anger. Instead, Gooigi drew back, and Luigi's mind was left partially empty.

Gooigi sat up, placing a hand on his swaying head, _Then I'd better go with you._

"Huh?" Luigi looked him up and down, "You sure? You seemed so afraid before..."

_The last time you left, I could do nothing but worry._ Gooigi shifted on the bed to lean against him, _You were all I could think about. I felt nothing through our link due to the distance, and I kept thinking about how she might torture you if you were caught. I wouldn't know. I will not sit on the sidelines this time. I need to keep you safe._

Luigi gave him a side hug, "That's very brave of you, bro, but if you get overshadowed again, then we'll both be in trouble."

_Well, not exactly._ Gooigi continued, _While you were gone, the professor has been trying to come up with a way to protect me from being overshadowed._

"Gooigi, you really don't have to go."

_I know, but I cannot let you get hurt again. I'll keep myself safe, and we'll have the others, too. I promise, I..._

Luigi squeezed him when he trailed off, "Thanks, Gooigi. If you like, I can stay in here while you rest."

_I...would like that, thank you._

"Don't mention it."

Gooigi didn't sleep, but true to his word, Luigi never left. Remembering Peach's words, he took the longest, slowest breath he could muster before letting it out, trying to focus on more pleasant thoughts. He projected the resulting calm onto Gooigi, and he could feel him visibly relax.

It was just past noon when they both re-entered the lab. E. Gadd waved them over, and Mario and Peach crowded around the computer as well.

"Okay, Gooigi." E. Gadd handed a tiny electronic chip over, "Keep this in your body, and it should protect you from being overshadowed."

Gooigi eagerly reached his hand out, touching the chip with one finger and allowing it to absorb into his body.

E. Gadd nodded in approval, "Powder!"

"Time to test your little invention?" Powder guessed as she phased into the room.

"You bet."

Powder waved her hands, conjuring the same illusion magic that Shady had used for the broken stairs. The illusion orbs soaked into Gooigi and seemed to vanish, yet nothing had actually changed about him. Luigi didn't even feel any change through the link.

E. Gadd scratched his head, "What did you try to do?"

"I tried to turn him invisible." Powder shrugged, "Pretty standard."

"Excellent!" E. Gadd said as Powder removed the illusion orbs, "Well, please be careful, Gooigi. If you ever realized that you've lost the chip, recall _immediately._ I don't care what you might be doing at the time, it's just not worth the risk."

Gooigi nodded, adding a gurgle of affirmation.

"Alright." E. Gadd addressed Luigi next, "My boy, we've decided that you're going after The Scientist first. She poses a bigger threat than Bowser, and we don't want her catching you off-guard."

Luigi felt Polterpup's cold presence before his nose affectionately nuzzled into his side, and he laughed, "Pup! Don't do that! You know I'm ticklish there!"

Polterpup just stared at him innocently, that big goofy grin on his face.

"I will never understand that pup." E. Gadd fired up the Pixelator once more, "Well, you know what to do. Good luck."

So Luigi, Mario, Peach, Gooigi, and Polterpup all disappeared through the Pixelator, and Luigi just caught Shady shivering and turning away before the world faded to black.

***

Luigi stood in front of the lab door, and immediately had to take pause. It had two locks on it. Already guessing the outcome, Luigi took out the fancy key dropped by Lachlan and slid it into the first lock. The key disappeared, and the lock fell to the floor.

"Well, that's one." Luigi said with uncertainty, "How much you wanna bet the last uncle has the last key?"

Gooigi shifted nervously, sharing a glance with Mario.

"I can help you with that."

Victoria floated in through the ceiling. She appeared even older now, 16 or so, and she had swapped out her Victorian nightgown for a Victorian mourning gown. All black, puffed sleeves and a large skirt with a narrow waist, though her white glow still shone through it. Her black hair was tied in a knot atop her head.

"Whoa." Mario marvelled, "When did you start growing up?"

"When my internal age started matching up with my actual age!" she laughed at her own subtly sarcastic remark, "But if you're wondering where Uncle Fabio is, he's probably in the ballroom. He's a bit...shall we say...grandiose."

"Wow, Luigi." Peach laughed along with her, "You showed her so much kindness that it knocked some sense into her."

Luigi scoffed humorously, "I guess. You helped, you know."

As they followed her through the winding hallways of the basement, Victoria began to hum quietly to herself. Normally, Luigi would be unsettled by a ghost trying to sing, but she seemed so happy, and he wasn't about to take that away from her.

"Hey, Victoria."

She stopped humming, "Yeah?"

Luigi took out his flashlight and walked ahead when it became darker, "I'm glad you're feeling better."

"Thanks." she floated by his side, "To be honest, I'm a little embarrassed now that I broke down on you like that."

"Don't be. We all have our moments." he good-naturedly bumped her arm with his elbow, "Including me."

She smiled at him, "I can tell. You're very brave, Luigi."

"Thank you."

She led them to the end of a long hallway, where a fancy set of double doors awaited them. Luigi tested the knob, finding the door unlocked.

"I wish I could help you." Victoria fiddled with the high collar on her gown, "But I am still terrified of my family."

"No worries. We can take care of it."

She beamed, "Hey, since you're getting rid of them for me, can I call you, 'Uncle Luigi'?"

Luigi let his mouth hang open for a bit, "I mean, I guess if you want to...?"

"Family sticks together, right?" Victoria laughed as she pulled him into a hug, "After centuries of torment, I'm finally allowing myself to heal. It's all because of you and your friends. I mean this, from the bottom of my heart; Thank you."

Luigi dropped the flashlight to hug her back, "You're welcome. Really, it's no trouble."

"Well, I should be going." Victoria headed back the way they came, "I know you can do this. I believe in you."

Once she was gone, Luigi picked up the flashlight. He felt the heavy darkness and the cold pins-and-needles in his fingertips; A sure sign of ghosts. It wasn't just from Victoria or Polterpup, though. There were many more. Possibly dozens. The idea of it made his skin crawl.

"Okay..." he took a steadying breath, pressing a button on the flashlight, "Gooigi, recall."

He did, and the group pushed the doors open.

The ballroom was massive, too big to even fit within the actual size of the estate. It was so big that the golden chandelier had to be taller than all three of them, but it was way up in the distance, too high to reach even with a well-placed jump. As Luigi shone his flashlight back and forth, the artificial lights all cut out, and the chandelier's candles were lit one by one.

"Oh boy." Luigi forced himself to keep breathing, _"Come on, Luigi...get back to your happy place..."_

Peach put a hand on his shoulder as the last candle was lit. Fabio stood beneath the chandelier, his fancy suit catching the low light in an unsettling way.

He grinned, holding up a shiny key, "Looking for this?"

Luigi bit his lip, already dreading this fight.

Fabio hid the key in his breast pocket, floating into the air to face him, "Too bad you'll never get it."

He vanished, and a chill ran up Luigi's spine. He found himself stiff as a board, unable to move until a sharp mental kick from Gooigi made him lurch forward.

Mario grabbed his arm, and that got him moving again. Fabio began to throw beams of magic at them, manifesting as purple orbs of light. One whizzed by Luigi's ear, and he felt it singe his hair. As they rained down, they became more frequent and difficult to dodge, and Luigi was so occupied trying to stay out of their path that he couldn't pay attention to his friends. He turned his head in time to watch Mario sweep Peach into his arms when he tripped, and it distracted him-!

"Ow!" Luigi flew backwards, his nose burned by the attack.

Fabio laughed at him, but he had also needed to stop attacking to rest. That was when Luigi got to his feet and flashed the strobulb. Fabio was only distracted by it for less than a second, but luckily, that was more than enough. Luigi sucked him up with the vacuum, trying to find traction on the polished ballroom floor. At least there was no furniture to hit this time. When Fabio's tail got stuck in the nozzle, Luigi practically fell forward, but he regained his footing, and in no time, he was able to slam Fabio into the floor repeatedly.

He escaped from the Poltergust, vanishing once again, and even though he hadn't been fighting for very long, Luigi's muscles had started to protest. He rested his hands on his knees, panting heavily, the weight of the Poltergust suddenly too stifling.

He didn't have long to catch his breath, however. Fabio was back to throwing concentrated balls of magic at him. However, before they could get too frequent, Mario called out to him.

"LUIGI!"

Luigi looked. Mario was holding an orb in his hands, but it was much smaller than the others, and it was an almost inky black.

"These are tangible!" Mario threw the orb at Fabio, which stunned him.

Luigi used the strobulb and slam technique afterwards, and when Fabio disappeared, Mario gave him a thumbs up.

"How did you do that!?" Luigi asked incredulously.

"Easy! I just spun near it and it went out! I bet you could use your vacuum on them!"

Well, since he'd suggested it, it was worth a shot. Luigi caught the first orb thrown at him in the vacuum nozzle, and it went out, getting stuck in the end. Luigi switched triggers to launch the cooled orb at Fabio, and in his stunned silence, Luigi sucked him up. This time, there was no escape.

"Hey!" Fabio pushed against the nozzle with both hands, "You can't do this to me! Did that ungrateful brat put you up to this!?"

"If you mean your niece, the answer is no!" Luigi squeezed the trigger harder, "I'm doing this to stop you causing trouble!"

"Uh, let's negotiate! I can make you win a contest you never entered! People like to win!"

"Already been there!"

"Really!? What about gold!? Riches!? Gems!? People still like wealth, don't they!?"

"I'm already a multi-millionaire, so I don't think I need it!"

"You gotta be pulling my leg here!" Fabio disappeared up to his chest, "Ah! Wh-what about true love!? That's still cool this decade, I'm sure of it!"

"I already have a girlfriend, and I love her to death!"

"Okay, now you're bluffing! You can't have all of those things!"

"Even if I didn't, I still wouldn't accept your offer!" Luigi yanked back on the controls. Man, this was taking awhile, "I never asked for everything my heart could possibly desire! And even if I did, why should I trust you!?"

Fabio seemed to realize that his plan was falling apart, "NO! CURSE YOU, LUIGI! I'LL GET YOU FOR THIS! I'LL GET YOU IF IT'S THE LAST THING I-!"

"Take a number, buddy! You can plan your revenge in the ghost vault!"

And with that, Fabio was dragged, kicking and screaming, into the depths of the Poltergust. The key shot out of the nozzle shortly after. The lights came back on, and the chandelier blew out.

Peach called from his left, "Luigi! You did it!"

Luigi wiped his forehead, "Whew! I sure did!"

That was when he registered a faint creaking sound. He tried to place it, but it didn't fully set in until he heard a very audible, _snap!_

Mario paled, "Luigi, LOOK OUT!"

Luigi looked up. The chandelier was falling. It was going to crash into him. He tried to get himself to move, but he was frozen on the spot-!

Gooigi emerged from the tank in time to shove him, and the goo creature took the impact instead. The sound of shattering glass filled the room, and Mario and Peach flinched away from it.

"Oof!" Luigi landed on his side, "Gooigi!"

Polterpup came out from the shadows, sniffing at the puddle that reformed beneath the shattered remains of the chandelier. It moved beside Luigi to reform, and Gooigi tenderly took Luigi's cheek in his hand.

"Huh?" Luigi touched his face, and his fingers came off bloody. One of the bits of the chandelier had cut his cheek, "Oh! Yikes!"

Mario knelt beside him, "Are you okay!? Oh no! That looks bad!"

Luigi watched a drop of blood hit the floor, though oddly enough, he felt no pain from it, "Really? How bad is it?"

Mario tried to wipe some of the blood away, but the wound just kept on bleeding, "Doesn't it hurt?"

"Not at the moment, no." although, he could feel that it might start to, soon.

"We need to get this bandaged up." Mario helped him to his feet, "Come on, Peach."

"I'm right behind you."

When Luigi was back in the lab, Mario sat him down in a folding chair, retrieving the first aid kit while Peach took his Poltergust from him.

"Easy..." Mario used a damp cloth to dab away at the blood, "Oh, it's worse than I thought."

"That's not reassuring, bro."

"Don't worry, I can still fix it up." Mario took a bottle and a cotton round from the kit, "Okay, deep breath..."

Mario held Luigi's head with his other hand, pressing the soaked pad to the wound. Luigi tried not to flinch away from it, but as soon as it touched him, he hissed in pain, taking a sharp breath in through his teeth. Tears pricked in his eyes. It hurt much worse than he was expecting it to.

"There. All done." Mario placed a large bandage over the newly-cleaned cut.

Luigi reached for Peach's hand, who gave his a squeeze, "It never gets easier."

"I know." Mario put everything away, "Hey, you did great."

"Thanks, bro." Luigi gave a wheezing laugh, "It's like that time I cut myself shaving, eh?"

Mario hit his arm, "You did not just make that joke now!"

Peach's eyebrows rose, "You shave?"

"Of course we shave!" Luigi pointed at his face, "You think with moustaches this full we couldn't grow full beards if we wanted? Ridiculous!"

Gooigi reached for Luigi's injury, but he caught his arm out of the air.

"Gooigi." he sat up straight as he held his hand, "You saved my life."

The realization dawned over the rest of them in that moment, and Gooigi shied away from the stares he received.

"You did, didn't you?" Mario took Gooigi's hand from Luigi, "Imagine if you hadn't been there! Thank you! We can never repay you for what you've done!"

Gooigi gave him his own kind of smile, _"Yyouu allrreaddy hhavve."_

Luigi wrapped him up in a huge hug, with Mario and Peach joining in a second later.

"I guess I've saved you too, huh?" Luigi giggled uncontrollably, "Sorry, I feel like I'm in shock a little bit."

"If you're not feeling up to more fighting, then you should rest while you're here." E. Gadd didn't take his eyes off his computer screen, "The Scientist won't go easy on you, and the last thing you want is to go in with a disadvantage."

"True." Luigi leapt back when Polterpup jumped into his lap, "Hey, Puppy."

Polterpup kissed his cheek, and the pain faded slightly.

"This has nothing to do with the mission, but..." E. Gadd chuckled, "If you shave your face, have you ever shaved your moustache off?"

"Oh, I did. Once." Luigi shivered, "Never again."

"I did too, on the same day." Mario explained, "We look like ten year olds without our moustaches."

Peach rolled her eyes, "Oh, I'm sure."

"No, really!" Luigi insisted, "We hardly left the house after our stupid experiment until our moustaches grew back! It was a total nightmare!"

"I don't believe you!"

"Tell you what," Mario stared her down very seriously, "When this is all over, I will cover my moustache with make up so you can see!"

"Don't you have any photos?"

"Why would we take photos of our baby faces!?" Luigi said.

"Why would we take photos when we could just look at photos from when we were ten?" Mario said.

Peach frowned, annoyed, "You two are being dramatic!"

The event that shut them up was when Gooigi shapeshifted his face to remove the moustache. Mario and Luigi screamed in alarm.

Peach pinched Gooigi's cheek, "Aw! How cute!"

"It's not cute!" Luigi's face burned, "Gooigi, stop that! Put it back!"

Instead of listening though, Gooigi began to laugh, garbled by the goo, but still clearly identifiable.

Luigi glanced at Mario, but for once, he was just as speechless and embarrassed in a situation as him.

E. Gadd tried to speak through his own laughs, "Wait, lemme see!"

"No! Don't!" Mario and Luigi said in unison.

Gooigi dodged their grasp to dash to the desk.

"Gooigi!" Luigi stumbled after him, "Don't _ever_ do that in front of Toadette! She would _never_ let me hear the end of it!"

"C-come on...Luigi..." E. Gadd gasped out between his laughter, "It's...it's all in good fun...right?"

Gooigi placed his pointer fingers to his cheeks, and it was at this point when Luigi and Mario finally smiled wide and began to laugh.

"As long as you promise you're not mocking me..." Luigi returned to his seat, "It looks funny though, doesn't it? Like me and Mario can suddenly age backwards twenty years."

"It certainly is novel, my boy!" E. Gadd replaced his glasses on his face from where they'd fallen askew, "In any case, let me know when you're ready to leave, and Mario, _please_ send me a photo of yourself without your moustache. Uh, for science!"

"Nice try, old man. I offered that to Peach, not you."

"Oh, alright. Worth a shot. Did you forget Gooigi could do that?"

"YES!"

Luigi felt Gooigi's delight and playfulness through the link, and he just couldn't bring himself to stay mad at him. E. Gadd was right, Gooigi meant no ill-will.

Gooigi shapeshifted back to normal, and Luigi was grateful he could experience one more calm before the storm.

***


	11. Chapter 11

Luigi looked out over Evershade Valley from the roof of the manor, a heavy feeling in his chest. Going after The Scientist was the obvious choice, but he remembered through his haze of a memory that people had been fighting in front of Bowser's castle. Leaving them there didn't seem right, and he'd been thinking about it the whole time they'd been gone.

"Luigi?"

Luigi instinctively stuck his arm out to catch the newcomer, "Peach? What are you doing up here?"

"I was looking for you." she knelt next to him, running a hand through her unruly bangs, "We're ready to go. Is something bothering you?"

"Yes, actually." he leaned into her arm, "What was going on in front of Bowser's castle when you came to rescue me?"

Peach didn't answer. Luigi looked at her to see that her brow had furrowed in thought, a hand on her chin.

"He mentioned something about that when he attacked my castle..."

"Wait, what?" 

Peach continued as if he hadn't spoken, "There's been a weird conflict going on between our two Kingdoms, but I couldn't tell if that fight was related to it or not. My counsel told me they had it under control, and there was no fighting at that point. When my castle was attacked, I escaped thinking it was Bowser, but now that I'm thinking about it again I'm not so sure..."

"Hold on, Peach. Slow down." Luigi said, "You knew there was a conflict going on, but you didn't try to stop it?"

"I would have, but like I said, the counsel wouldn't even acknowledge that there was a problem. They have more power than me collectively, so there really wasn't much I could do besides hope they knew what they were doing and try to take my mind off of it." she wrapped an arm around him, "You're really good at helping with that, you know."

Luigi smiled a bit leaning into her, "So, wait, what do you know about it now?"

"Well, since I've been with you, I've been able to figure it out at least somewhat." Peach began to explain, "The counsel didn't tell me because they feared it was nothing more than a tactic to anger me, as they had only rumors of a conflict but no evidence of one. Furthermore, they couldn't even confirm for sure where the rumors had come from. Surely _something_ was happening in The Mushroom Kingdom, or the rumors wouldn't have spread so far, but at that point, we couldn't prove they were anything more than stories."

Luigi considered the information, "Until your castle was attacked."

"Exactly." Peach sighed, "Now I have a diplomatic disaster on my hands."

"Isn't there anything you can do?" Luigi got up on his knees to face her, "If you knew about this, then why did you come with me to the estate?"

"Well, like I said, we hadn't been able to confirm that the attacker wasn't Bowser, and his goal is always me anyway." Peach took his arms to steady him, "But now we know that the attacker was not just after me. They captured King Boo too."

Luigi thought about it, "Oh, Bowser tried to take you, but I pushed you out of the way."

"Yeah. I don't know if you heard this, but they were going to let you go once they realized they had the wrong person, but then they recognized it as you and they changed their minds."

"What?" Luigi felt the color drain from his face, "What are you talking about?"

Peach held him close, rubbing circles into his arm, "I think at this point, we know that either Bowser has completely lost his mind..."

Luigi finished for her, _"Or it's not really Bowser..."_

Peach let him digest the information before he huddled closer to her, and she gave him a squeeze in response.

Her voice came out as a hush, "You don't think it's King Boo?"

"But King Boo is with us." Luigi replied softly, "And why would he trap himself in Bowser's castle? Even if he wanted to, I know what ghost containment devices look like. He couldn't have set that up himself."

"Still. Maybe he knows something." Peach pulled Luigi to his feet as she stood, "Let's go ask."

King Boo was wandering circles around Gooigi in the foyer, seemingly lost in thought. Luigi was wondering where that tinge of annoyance was coming from. Gooigi had his arms crossed as he tapped his foot the same way Luigi did when he was annoyed. It was kind of adorable on him.

As Luigi got closer, though, he realized that Gooigi was vibrating. It wasn't very obvious, but Luigi recognized it as a sign that boos were nearby. He wondered when he stopped noticing it and why.

"Oh, hey, plumber."

Gooigi acknowledged the newcomers with a nod, but the annoyance didn't fade.

"Um..." Luigi looked between them, "Did something happen?"

_King Boo can hear my thoughts and he didn't tell me._

"What?" Luigi turned to King Boo, who rolled his eyes.

"Of course I can hear your thoughts! Boos communicate through a wavelength just like goos do!"

_And you didn't tell me until you got annoyed that I was worried about Luigi!_

"Your thoughts are loud and I don't need to feel so much sympathy for someone who trapped me in the ghost vault three times!"

"Uh, guys?" Luigi said, "Just hold on a minute."

Gooigi let both arms fall to his sides before heading up the stairs to his room.

"King Boo, I have a question for you." Luigi stuffed his hands in his pockets, "Why were you in Bowser's dungeon? And who trapped you there?"

"Darn if I know. I assumed it was Bowser, but I didn't actually see. Why?"

"Because we're not sure if it was actually Bowser or not." Luigi explained, "In fact, I would suspect _you_ if you hadn't been trapped in Bowser's dungeon."

"Well, it certainly wouldn't be the first time I disguised myself as that bumbling buffoon..." King Boo went back to floating around the room, "Why does it matter anyway?"

"Um, it matters so we can stop whoever stormed the Charleston Estate?"

"I mean, sure, but I thought you guys were going after The Scientist first."

"Well, now I'm not so sure." Luigi swallowed, "The door to her lab is locked, so maybe she expects us to stay away longer. It could be an opportunity."

"An opportunity to get yourself killed." King Boo scoffed, hovering over Luigi to glower at him, "You just escaped from that place, now you wanna go _back?"_

"Hey, back off." Peach pushed him between the eyes, "You're making him uncomfortable."

Luigi steadied his racing heart, "King Boo, it's not that I _want_ to go back, but we need to stop whoever is doing this."

"Maybe _you_ do." King Boo threw his arms up in exasperation, "But I'm not a hero! I'm still evil, in case you forgot! And I have my own problems with my boos disappearing and not coming back when I call!"

Something clicked in Luigi's head, prompting Gooigi to poke his head out from the second story hallway.

"King Boo..." Luigi said slowly, "Can boos overshadow people?"

King Boo shrugged, "We can technically, but it isn't common."

Luigi grit his teeth, "Could you have ever overshadowed me?"

"Sure I could have, but it's such a cheap tactic. If I was ever going to beat you, I would want to win on my own merits rather than a power we borrow from other sources. We're too prideful for that. And besides, I would need to get close to the Poltergust in order to do it, and we all know how I feel about that thing."

Luigi lifted an eyebrow as Gooigi rejoined them in the foyer, "What _would_ you use it for?"

"Well, I can't really answer that, but it would need to be a last resort kinda thing." King Boo scrutinized him, his tiny purple eyes thinning into slits, "Why are you asking me this? What's with your sudden interest in my affairs?"

Despite Luigi's continued fear of his former adversary, he rolled his eyes at him, "Because I think your boos might have overshadowed Bowser."

King Boo's eyes widened so far they lost their constant shadow, "What? There's no way. That would mean they captured me, and they wouldn't do that!"

"It's just a hunch. I don't really have evidence to support it." Luigi replied, "But it's something to consider."

"Luigi, they can disguise themselves as Bowser, and that would be much easier. There would be no need."

"But they've been operating from Bowser's castle." Luigi argued, "It would be pretty weird to have that as a part of your plan without getting rid of him somehow."

"Sure, but you said yourself, this is just speculation!"

Luigi opened his mouth to reply, but instead he let the air out of his lungs, growing quiet and thoughtful.

"Gooigi." he said, "Let's go talk to E. Gadd."

When the four of them entered the lab, E. Gadd was sitting at his desk as usual, but he wasn't typing or even looking at the screen. Luigi couldn't tell what he was thinking about, but regardless, he gave the open door a knock to break him from it.

"Oh! Luigi!" E. Gadd's single-toothed smile returned, the apathy from before having disappeared, "Are you ready to go after The Scientist?"

"Actually...I had an unrelated question."

"About Bowser?"

"Yeah. How'd you know?"

E. Gadd shrugged, "Lucky guess." he turned back to his computer, "What's your question?"

Mario joined them at the desk as Luigi said, "Is there supernatural activity around Bowser's castle?"

E. Gadd took his hands off the keyboard as he thought, and he began to type, a map of the Koopa Kingdom appearing on the monitor.

Without much more research, E. Gadd answered, "Yes."

"What kind?"

"Umm..." he adjusted the view, fiddling with his glasses to assist with his vision, "Well I'll be damned! Bowser's castle is _teeming_ with boos!"

King Boo's mouth fell open, his tongue lolling out as he stared.

"I _knew_ something was up." Luigi shot King Boo an accusatory glare, "Why didn't you tell us your boos were in Bowser's castle?"

"Because I didn't know!" his voice rose an octave, "Honest! I don't keep track of their every move, you know! How was I supposed to know!?"

"Well, can't you tell them to go away!?"

"If they captured me then I highly doubt-!" King Boo sank to the floor, his tongue draping across the ground, "They captured me. But they wouldn't. They're loyal to me. Why would they...?"

He sank even further, flattening on the ground like a pillowy marshmallow. He seemed so small and vulnerable like that, Luigi almost felt sorry for him.

"Oh..." E. Gadd leaned back in his chair, "Luigi, I can keep an eye on The Scientist for you. Do you want to stop the boos before the situation gets worse?"

Luigi slowly began to nod, "Yeah. That might be best. We need to hurry, though."

E. Gadd fired up the Pixelator, "Well, you know the drill. Call me if you need anything."

"Send me through too!" King Boo joined them beside the giant screen, "I gotta see this for myself!"

***

Poltergust equipped, Luigi swivelled his flashlight around the new area. The square in The Koopa Kingdom was empty, but he just caught several Bowser enemies peeking out from various windows. There were two familiar figures in the center of the square, and Luigi put the flashlight away as he approached them.

A bright light fell over them, "Who's there!?"

Luigi shielded his eyes, "Ack! Captain, Toadette, it's me!"

Captain Toad dimmed his headlight, "Luigi! Mario! Princess! I was wondering when you were gonna show up!"

Toadette ran to them, "Luigi, I _am_ happy to see you, but why did you come back!?"

"Isn't it obvious?" he replied, "I'm here to stop this!"

"But you can't! It's not safe for you here!"

"Ah!" King Boo shyly covered his face when the headlight fell on him, "Watch where you point that thing, fungus brain!"

Captain Toad gasped, "King Boo!"

"Yeah yeah, we've been through this before. He's with us." Luigi knelt down to be on eye-level with his friend, "Toadette, what's going on?"

"I'll tell you as soon as you leave! These guys are after you! I mean it! _GO!"_

Bowser's castle doors opened wide, spilling hundreds of boos into the square. They surrounded the group, and Luigi cried out as he pointed the flashlight in all directions.

"Haha! Look at him! He just couldn't resist being the hero!" they cackled, swirling in spirals around them and blocking any chance of escape.

"WAAAHH!" Toadette clung to Luigi's leg, "D-don't hurt him!"

Luigi struggled with the dark light, but the boos were moving too quickly to stun.

"Boolius?" King Boo watched them in disbelief, "Boogie? Boolossus? Booligan!? Boosment!? What are you all doing!?"

"You've gone soft, Boss!" Boolossus, the biggest boo of them all, towered over them, "We're boos! We scare people! We cause mischief! Did you really think we would simply give up!? Hahaha!"

"It's not giving up if you've already lost!" King Boo's eyes glowed in the darkness, "Why do you go against your king!? Stand down!"

"Nice try, Boss." Boogie danced in front of them, "But you know we only follow you as a formality. Boos cannot truly be ruled! We do what we want!"

The purple gem on King Boo's crown shone brilliantly, "This is your final warning! Stand down _or else!"_

"Sorry, Boss." Boomerang shot forward, "But unless you'll help us catch Luigi, we can't do that."

"Fine! Do what you want!" King Boo seethed, and Luigi flinched back from his anger, "But I'd rather be on the winning side!"

"Tough luck, then!" Boolivia spat back at him, "Prepare to get demolished!"

Luigi squeezed his eyes shut, and Gooigi emerged to wrap both arms around him as the light engulfed them.

***


	12. Chapter 12

"AHHH!" Luigi sat up, his eyes meeting pitch-black darkness. He lifted a hand to his head as he willed it to stop spinning.

_It's okay, Luigi. I'm here._

Luigi's arm fell on a familiar gooy figure, who took his hand to squeeze it, "Gooigi. Where are we?"

 _I don't know for sure, but it looks like Bowser's throne room._ Gooigi shifted, and the floor moved beneath them, _I think we might be hanging from the ceiling._

Luigi felt his eyeballs roll around in his head, "No kidding. Do you see anyone else?"

 _I don't know. Everything is too far away._ Gooigi felt along the grated floor, _I can leave through the bars, but I didn't want to leave you while you were unconscious._

Luigi slowly nodded, "Okay. Um, can you leave now? Maybe see what you can find?"

Gooigi squeezed his hand again, _Okay. Remember, I'm still here._

Gooigi slid through the bars in the floor of the cage, and he flattened against the floor before popping back up. Immediately, the two of them felt a disturbance in the link, but they could still communicate, and Gooigi could see far enough to take a few steps at a time.

 _I don't see any switches, but I bet I could find one._ Gooigi took out his flashlight to shine the dark light, and Luigi could just barely see it through the haze.

Luigi thought aloud to him, in case his voice wouldn't carry, _Do you see anything?_

 _Not yet._ Gooigi circled the room, _Hey, did you notice anything odd about the darkness?_

 _Yeah, it's..._ Luigi strained his eyes in the darkness, _Hey, will I be safe if I switch to you?_

_You should be. Pay attention, though._

Luigi lay down in the cage before dipping into Gooigi's mind. He stayed dormant to give Gooigi control, but now he could see the world through Gooigi's eyes.

 _Gooigi?_ Luigi asked him, _What is this weird fog over the room?_

_I don't know. There are no boos, though._

Oh, of course he would know that.

 _Oh yeah, I recognize this place._ Luigi pulled Gooigi's head to the side, _Use your dark light over there._

He did, and Bowser's throne appeared. The illusion orbs were shot out, and Gooigi sucked them up with the vacuum on his Poltergust. It revealed a switch on the wall, and when Gooigi flipped it, the lights turned on, and the suffocating darkness was chased away.

Luigi snapped back to his own body, and as he gazed out at the room, he saw three other cages, each with Mario, Peach, and King Boo respectively. Captain Toad was with Mario, and Toadette was with Peach. 

"Mario!" Luigi called, "Peach! Guys!"

"Luigi!" they responded, equally excited.

The cages lowered, and the doors on three of the cages opened. Luigi tried to open the door on his, but it wouldn't budge.

He gulped loudly, "Oh no..."

"Luigi!" Mario tugged on the door with all his might, "Urg! Why won't it open!?"

The sound of boos laughing filled the room, and Luigi's vision blacked out.

_It's just too bad. Even with all your efforts, they couldn't save you._

_How sad. Poor Luigi, trapped in a prison, all alone._

_Not even your precious brother can save you now._

_You failed. You're a failure._

_Give up. You had no chance anyway._

Gooigi phased in through the bars, shaking back and forth from his boo sense, _Luigi, what's wrong? Can you hear me?_

Luigi's eyes were glowing purple, his teeth clenched as tears streamed down his face.

 _Luigi, snap out of it!_ Gooigi grabbed his sweater to shake him, _Everything they're saying isn't true! I'm right here! Look at me!_

All the voices were too loud. Luigi squeezed his head between his hands, crying out at the noise as he stifled his sobs.

 _Luigi!_ Gooigi dropped his grip, taking the dark light and shining it at him.

Luigi stood stiff as a board as the haze of the light passed over him, but despite how well it usually worked against boos, it wasn't doing anything to dispel them from Luigi. Gooigi was just beginning to panic when the double doors in the throne room burst open.

"HEY!"

Three boos emerged from Luigi's head, one of which hid under his hat. E. Gadd was standing at the door, Bowser behind him, with a green wire of electricity trailing behind the Poltergust on his back.

He revved the engine, pointing the super-charged nozzle into the air, "DUCK!"

Gooigi yanked Luigi to the ground, and E. Gadd turned on the super-suction. The cages disappeared into the vacuum as the boos fought against it, getting sucked out of Luigi's head and into the depths of the Poltergust. The entire room was cleared out, piece by piece, until every last boo had been sucked inside...including King Boo.

Once the super-suction shut off, E. Gadd shook the nozzle, and King Boo re-emerged, shaking himself off with a shiver.

"Uh, sorry."

"Whatever, old man."

Gooigi got up onto his knees, shaking Luigi's still form, _Luigi? Are you okay?_

Luigi coughed, rubbing his throat which had frozen shut, "Ugh...why? Why did they..."

Mario extended his hand out to him, but instead, Luigi threw himself into his arms to cry into his shoulder, and Mario held him close.

"Okay, let's get out of here." E. Gadd handed the Poltergust to Gooigi, "Goodbye, Bowser. I hope I never see you again."

"Feeling's mutual!" was the hulking koopa's reply.

Once through the Pixelator, E. Gadd stumbled into his chair, his breaths coming shallow and harsh.

Luigi let go of Mario, concern overpowering his shock, "E. Gadd, are you okay?"

"Oh yes...my boy..." E. Gadd placed a shaking hand over his pounding heart, "It's...it's nothing...it'll pass..."

Luigi grabbed the desk as he stooped to look at the old scientist. His face had grown pale as he held his clammy hands close to his chest.

"E. Gadd..." Luigi waited for him to look up at him, "How long has it been since you've slept?"

"What? There's no time for that my boy! And besides! I slept a few hours ago!"

Luigi threw his hands up, "No! Not the times you passed out at your desk when I really needed you!"

E. Gadd flinched.

"I _mean,_ when did you actually step back and sleep for eight hours in an actual bed? When was the last time you took a break from this research of yours?"

E. Gadd glared off into the distance, "Luigi, I'm fine. Don't get in such a twist over it."

"But I'm worried about you!" Luigi sighed, "Here you are so concerned for my health and well-being to the point of abandoning your computer to come and rescue me, but you can't even be bothered to give yourself a break?"

"I'm not out on the field. Not usually. I don't need it."

"Of course you need it!" Luigi tried not to raise his voice, but he was shaking from tension and stress, "You're a human being! You need to eat and sleep and breathe and drink water and everything a human needs to be healthy but instead you sit here and kill your eyes looking at this screen whenever you aren't poking at ghosts and causing your whole body to atrophy except for your hands which probably have freaking carpal tunnel syndrome by now!"

He took a huge breath after his rant, the tension leaving his shoulders and forcing him to grip the desk to keep his balance. When he looked at E. Gadd's glasses again, the ever-constant spirals inside them were fogged over.

He slumped over on his desk, and he began to cry.

"Ah! Oh no!" Luigi bit his nails through his gloves, "I'm sorry! I don't know why I took all of that out on you! I didn't mean it! I mean, I did mean it, you need to take care of yourself, but I didn't mean-!"

"It's alright, Luigi. I understand." E. Gadd wiped his tears away, "You're right, I don't take proper care of myself, and I know it'll probably be my downfall."

"Then why are you crying?"

"Because, I..." he let out a breath of air, his lungs shaking, "I knew the risks of leaving, and..."

After a long pause, he leaned back on his chair to stare at the ceiling. Gooigi reached out a hand, but then he retracted it.

"Um..." Luigi watched him curiously, "Did something happen?"

"Well...kind of." E. Gadd sighed, his arms dangling off the chair on either side of him, "I know, you've probably wondered why I was on the field in that first mansion, but not any of the times after that."

"I actually did wonder about that." Luigi leaned back on the desk and crossed his arms, "I just assumed your age was catching up with you."

"That is part of it, my boy." E. Gadd frowned as he continued his mindless staring, "You see, I did try to continue my field research after I met you, but one day while I was out, I suffered a non-ST elevation myocardial infarction. Do you know what that is?"

Upon Luigi's head shake, he gave another long and heavy sigh.

"It's what we commonly refer to as a mild heart attack."

Luigi started, "A heart attack?"

"Sort of." E. Gadd wrung his hands together, "You see, while I was out ghost hunting one day, I began to feel tired and light-headed. I assumed it was nothing, so I kept going. It wasn't until the next room when I found it hard to breathe. My vision doubled, and it was impossible to stay upright. I began to panic. Thinking I had simply been out too long, I pixelated back to the lab, but the feeling only got worse. My vision blacked out, and I feared I only had seconds left to do something before I lost consciousness, so I scrambled for my phone and called for an ambulance. Of course, I live in the middle of _nowhere,_ so it took _forever_ for them to get to me, but the next thing I know, I was in the hospital, so they must have gotten to me on time."

The pitiful attempt at sarcasm hit Luigi like a ton of bricks. The poor man wasn't used to feeling so vulnerable, and that was reflected in how he seemed to melt under the stress of telling this story.

"I was lucky to have survived, and my heart hadn't been badly damaged by the attack, but my whole body had shut down from the few minutes I spent with minimal oxygen. I needed a ventilator because I couldn't breathe on my own, and I needed to be fed intravenously because my stomach was too weak to hold anything... _I spent every waking moment wondering if I was going to die..."_

Gooigi placed a hand on E. Gadd's chair, and the old man looked up at him, giving him a weak smile.

"E. Gadd..." Luigi said, "Why did you never tell me this?"

"Because I didn't want you to see me as a frail old man. I'm not! I'm a scientist! I'm an intellectual thinker! I'm an inventor! I don't plan to stop just because I'm older!" E. Gadd hid his face in his hands, "But that health scare was a huge wake-up call for me. I knew I was old, but it hadn't fully sunk in for me just how old I am until then. However old you think I am, I'm probably older than that. So, after all of that, I couldn't go out on the field. Just the thought of it made me terrified that I would pass out in the middle of a fight, and I hope I don't have to explain to you how dangerous that would be."

"Until today." Luigi slid to the floor, his back against the drawers of the desk, "E. Gadd, I'm so sorry."

"Please, don't be." E. Gadd lay his head on the desk, "It was actually what inspired me to create Gooigi here. I was hoping he would continue my research once I eventually passed on."

Gooigi gurgled in distress.

"Wait, just how old _are_ you?"

E. Gadd gave a wheezing laugh, "Are you ready to hear that, my boy? You may not believe me."

"Try me."

"Alright." he paused, presumably for dramatic effect, "I'm a hundred and six."

"A hundred and six!?"

Polterpup ran to Luigi at the exclamation, staring at the old man with blank wide eyes. Peach had both hands on her mouth. Even Mario took pause at the high number.

"I bet you weren't expecting that!" E. Gadd chuckled, "But you know what that means, don't you? I could simply croak at any time. It's incredible that I've made it to such an old age."

"That means even when me and Mario were born, you were already very old!"

"That's right. One oh six minus thirty two is seventy four, so I was seventy four when you were born."

Luigi reeled, his head resting against the desk, "That's unreal to me. You're old enough to be my grandfather."

"Possibly older." E. Gadd replied, "And that's why I'm expecting every day to be my last. I know I know, you're wondering why I'm not taking proper care of myself if I know it could kill me faster. Well, I suppose I'm just...too scared to leave my computer. I knew what was going to happen to you with all those boos in Bowser's castle, but I sat here for forty minutes doing nothing because I knew I would need to come after you myself and I was just working up the nerve to do it. I almost expected to have another heart attack before I even made it to you because my heart was beating so fast. You would have died, and I would have been uselessly unconscious in the hallway of Bowser's castle."

Luigi stood up, turning the chair to face him, "Is that why you called on me during the Dark Moon crisis? Because you were afraid to do it all yourself?"

E. Gadd hung his head, _"Yes. I was terrified."_

"And you're terrified now."

He gave a slow nod before he began to cry again.

 _"Prroofffeessssorrr..."_ Gooigi shared a look with Luigi.

"E. Gadd..." Luigi knelt in front of him, "Is it alright if I hug you?"

After a moment's hesitation, he nodded, _"Mhm."_

Luigi carefully wrapped both arms around him, and E. Gadd in turn held Luigi around his back. He would hardly call E. Gadd a frail old man, but the figure in his arms felt so bony and fragile. Had E. Gadd always been like this, or was there a time when he appeared healthier? Gooigi joined in the hug too, and they stayed still like that for a long time.

When Luigi finally broke away, he took E. Gadd's hands, so much thinner than his own, "E. Gadd. You need to take a break."

"But I need to watch The Scientist..." E. Gadd weakly protested.

"You know Gooigi can do that." Luigi eased him off the chair, "Come on."

E. Gadd scowled through his tears, "Fine."

Gooigi pushed a couch into the lab, and Luigi helped E. Gadd climb up onto it. He lay on his back, disdainfully looking at the ceiling above him.

"Luigi?"

Luigi gave Gooigi a wave as he left to sit by the computer, "Yeah?"

E. Gadd gave Luigi's hand a squeeze, "Promise me that after I die, you'll take care of Gooigi."

"What?" Luigi felt a pang in his heart, "Yes, of course I will. He's my little brother."

E. Gadd nodded, letting go to rest his hands on his stomach, "Oh, and don't think this changes anything, my boy. I don't want you treating me any differently than you always have. Got it?"

Luigi saluted off the top of his cap, "Whatever you say, old man."

E. Gadd smiled as he drifted off, and his soft snoring filled the silence of the room. However much longer he would live, Luigi wanted to make sure he was there. He knew from experience that happy memories made it easier to say goodbye.

King Boo gave Luigi a subdued nod before disappearing, and Luigi wondered where he would go without any allies.

Well, it wasn't his problem.

 _Finally._ Gooigi thought humorously, drawing a laugh from Luigi, _I didn't think he'd ever leave._

***


	13. Chapter 13

Luigi inserted the key into the second lock, and the door fully unlocked. Lock and key clattered to the floor, and he reached out. He felt his fingertips brush the surface of the doorknob, but his arm was stuck. It wouldn't move any farther.

Gooigi emerged from the Poltergust, placing a steadying hand on his shoulder.

"Luigi?" Peach said to him, "What's wrong?"

Luigi took his arm back, swallowing the bile that threatened to snake up his throat, "I'm scared."

Mario took the hand as it fell, "I understand. I'm scared too."

Luigi glanced at him, and they shared a look of mutual unease.

"Gooigi." he said, "I want you to recall, okay?"

_Why? I need to keep you safe._

"You will, but..." Luigi internally tried to reason around seeing the room first before he said, "Just...do it until we're inside, okay?"

Gooigi relented, disappearing and swelling into Luigi's mind. The hum of his thoughts was reassuring to him.

"Okay." Luigi grasped the doorknob before he could change his mind, "Here goes nothing."

The first thing he noticed once he was inside was that it was _bright._ He realized that he had never been in here as himself. He'd only seen it through Gooigi's eyes, never his own. As such, he also began to notice the color. The wallpaper was a faded blue color, and the white tiles were grimy; Clean but stained. The test tubes and beakers and such were spotless, but by contrast, the minimal folding tables were filthy. Not a single flat surface retained the care that the equipment seemed to get. The wallpaper had faded steam engines painted on them, giving the indication that this was once a child's room. Thinking of Victoria, Luigi felt a mixture of dread and righteous anger rise in his chest.

The lights suddenly cut out, and Luigi scrambled for the flashlight, "H-hello?"

The lab door slammed shut behind them, and Luigi grabbed Mario's hand.

"I thought Fabio might keep you busy longer than that." a voice tittered at them from the darkness, "Oh well. I had plenty of time to prepare after your stunt with the flashlight."

A spike of fear hit Gooigi as Luigi shone his flashlight at the newcomer. She was a white ghost, with blank eyes and long black hair tied back in a braided updo. She wore a lab coat with many pockets overtop a simple white dress. Her wicked smile plastered on a thin face with dark circles under the eyes indicated days with little sleep.

As Luigi studied her, she smirked, her hands in her pockets, "Don't worry, my dear. This is an honor. You will advance scientific research for the good of all humanity! I will be sure you're remembered for generations!"

Peach yelled at her, "You're disgusting! You can't use him for science against his will!"

"Oh, no." The Scientist waved her hand, "I'm sure he _thinks_ it's against his will, but trust me, anyone would want to contribute to a good cause. Now be a nice little boy and stand still..."

She vanished, and the lab morphed until the walls were too far away to see. The hand holding the flashlight shook violently as Luigi tried to look in all directions at once. The ghostly chill seeped into his bones.

Before he could even begin to form a strategy, he felt a spike of alarm from Gooigi before a stab of pain shot through his head and he blacked out.

***

When Luigi came to, it was because Gooigi was pleading with him to wake up. He tried to move but found that he couldn't. Forcing his eyes open, he found himself strapped to a padded reclined chair, similar to what you'd find in a dentist's office. He felt cold sweat on his forehead, and he struggled against the straps that bound his wrists and ankles.

"Good. You're awake." The Scientist disinfected a syringe needle, "Now the real work can begin."

Luigi tugged against the constraints with all his might, his throat too frozen to form words. Mario was in a chair across the room, similarly fighting against the straps that bound him. Luigi's Poltergust was leaning against the wall nearby. Peach was locked behind the door of the lab, desperately banging on it, and Polterpup was chained to the wall with a spectral collar, constantly tugging against it and barking defiantly.

"Stop..." Luigi thrashed against the bindings, "Stop! Let me go!"

"Now now, there's no need for this." The Scientist took Luigi's glove off, taking a small needle to prick his finger and draw a drop of blood, "It will all work out in the end, you'll see."

She carried the blood in a tiny plastic container, holding it between her thumb and forefinger to carry it to the Poltergust. She disconnected the tank, dumping the contents onto the floor where Gooigi reformed and ran towards Luigi.

"Oh, no." she cast a spell on him, and he slammed into the wall, flattening against it before falling to the floor, "This won't be difficult. I promise."

Gooigi tried to fight against her, but to no avail.

"Gooigi!" Luigi fought even harder, "GOOIGI!"

The Scientist let the drop of Luigi's blood fall onto Gooigi, and instantly, Luigi's head was completely filled by him. He couldn't tell which thoughts were his own anymore. He couldn't tell where Luigi ended and Gooigi began. It was all a mess of signals to the point where their senses lost all meaning as they were simply trapped in an infinite loop of crowded thoughts.

Gooigi crumpled to the ground, and The Scientist used the syringe to take some goo from his body.

"Stop!" Mario didn't stop fighting, "You can't do this! Don't make them suffer!"

Luigi weakly flinched away from the syringe as The Scientist rolled up his sleeve and swiped a disinfectant over the inside of his elbow. She inserted the needle into the vein, and Luigi's vision was completely knocked out by the sheer force of the feelings that consumed him. He squirmed in his seat as The Scientist placed a bandage over the wound.

"Now now, there's no need to be upset." she gently held his hand as he whimpered, "You're doing a good thing. You're very brave, you know."

"Shut up!" Mario's wrists were burning from the effort of attempted escape, "You have no right to say that to him! How dare you treat us like this!? _You're disgusting!"_

The Scientist ignored him, placing a hand on Luigi's forehead, "How do you feel?"

Luigi simply choked, his head too full to form coherent thoughts.

"I see. It's just as I predicted."

Polterpup growled and barked as he fought ferociously against the chain that bound him, and Peach banged on the door ever more frantically.

The Scientist wrote a note on her clipboard nearby, "Fascinating. The link has grown strong enough for you to bleed together."

"Luigi! Gooigi!" tears streamed down Mario's face, "Guys, can you hear me!? Snap out of it!"

Emotions and thoughts passed between Luigi and Gooigi like light off perfect mirrors, amplifying each time they ricocheted back and forth.

_Who's there? Where's Mario? Luigi, I'm scared. Why is this happening? It hurts. I'm on fire. I'm underwater. I'm melting. I'm burning. I'm dying._

A tingly feeling gathered in their hearts as the goo in Luigi's blood tried to force itself out. Luigi retched violently, but Gooigi kept coursing through him, looking for a way out. Another lurch of Luigi's stomach, and he coughed up the goo into his lap. It bubbled as it separated from the blood, and it returned to Gooigi's shivering form on the floor. With a shaking hand, Gooigi brought the murky drop of blood to the surface of his palm and let it go. Their senses snapped back into focus.

The Scientist gasped, "Ooh! How intriguing!"

Luigi panted as he lay back in the chair. His chest was heaving, his head throbbing and his heart beating far too fast. As he tasted blood in his mouth, he realized that the inside of his nose and throat was bleeding _badly._

"LUIGI!"

Luigi turned to the voice, blood dripping down his chin, _"M-M-Mario..."_

"Gooigi! Are you okay!?" Mario thrashed, _"Luigi, are you two okay!?"_

Luigi could have cried, but he was too tired for that, "I feel horrible. My head hurts. I don't know who I am anymore."

"Yes yes! Keep talking!" The Scientist's pencil scribbled furiously before she offered a tissue to stanch the bleeding, tilting Luigi's head forward, "Incredible. How fascinating."

Gooigi backed into the corner, his legs shaking as he covered his chest with both arms. He projected crippling fear and hatred into Luigi's mind, and it wasn't helping either of them stay calm.

"Alright." The Scientist threw the bloodied tissue away and approached Gooigi, making his fear spike, "Don't worry, you won't be involved this time."

Gooigi tried to run for the door, but she swept him up and slammed him into the stained floor.

Luigi regained some of his strength, "Gooigi!"

The Scientist thrust her arm into his head, and both brothers' ears began to ring, "Just relax, alright?"

She twisted her fist inside his head, and Luigi's mind went completely blank. The connection was severed.

"No. No!" Luigi watched in horror as Gooigi collapsed into a puddle, recalling to the Poltergust as fast as he possibly could, "What did you do!? Did you break our link!?"

"If it makes you feel better, I can reestablish it before I conclude my experiment."

"What would make me feel better is if you _let me go!"_

"Oh, I'm sure you don't mean that."

More banging echoed from outside. E. Gadd was just visible through the door window, as well as Powder and Umbra. They were trying everything to break in, from ramming the door with the folding tables to hacking the door hoping it had a digital lock. All of these attempts failed, and Luigi and Mario could scarcely tear their eyes away from the prospect of freedom.

"Now that I have what I need, let's start my final experiment."

The Scientist took a thin wire with a suction cup on the end, touching the exposed copper with a goo-coated finger and sticking it to Luigi's forehead. She then took the other end and pressed it to Mario's.

"No!" Luigi snapped his head back, "Don't do that!"

E. Gadd called from outside, _"Luigi! Mario!"_

With the wire connecting them down the center, The Scientist sat back in the air with her clipboard, "Don't worry. It'll all be over soon."

Luigi felt it almost immediately. He began to feel Mario's fear. His anger. His sorrow and grief. As their minds melded together, Mario felt the same from Luigi, but mixed with morbid curiosity and apathy. Pure terror. Resolve. His feelings of inadequacy and powerlessness.

Eventually, they found themselves lost in their own minds, and both of them slumped over as if unconscious.

Luigi reached out like Gooigi had taught him, _Mario?_

_What is this!? What's going on!? Where am I!?_

_Mario, calm down! It's me!_

Mario paused, his thoughts chaotic and disorganized, _Luigi?_

_Yeah, bro. It's me._

_Where are we?_

Luigi wrapped his mind around him, like a mental hug, _We're inside our own heads. This is kinda what the telepathic link is like with me and Gooigi, just not as intense._

Emotions passed between them, and Mario felt around the endless void, _I don't know if I like this. Do you really feel so hopeless?_

_Mario, I've felt like a lost cause since the day we were born._

Mario didn't reply, but he did swell with shame and guilt.

_Do you really feel like you have too much pressure on you as a hero?_

Mario tried to gather his thoughts, _How did you know?_

_I'm sorry. It's kinda hard to miss._

_Yes. I mean...wouldn't you?_

_I'm just sick of feeling like you have to save me all the time._

_You've saved me no less than four times._

Luigi let his pride spread outward, _You're right. I'm sorry, I don't know why I'm still so hung up over it._

_It's okay. Something like that isn't easy to move on from._

Their thoughts of comradery floated back and forth until they found their footing in the void, so to speak. Luigi slowed until he mellowed out, trying to come up with a way to escape.

_We're still in the lab, aren't we?_ Mario thought.

_Yeah. There's no way we would have left._

_So how do we get out?_

It was interesting, being so close to each other. Even though they were twins and had been thick as thieves for their whole lives, they were still bound by physical reality. Now, they were interconnected, like stardust in a nebula. They were entwined, as if the two of them had fused, thinking together as one.

_I don't know._ Luigi confessed, _But we need to pull back. I think we're so invested in this that we've fallen back into our minds._

_Can you show me?_

Luigi focused as he pulled back, carefully untangling his thoughts from him, _See? Easy peasy._

_Okay. Well, here I go._

Mario tried to pull his thoughts away, and slowly, as they separated from each other, the light returned to their eyes.

"Mario! Luigi! Please wake up! Please! I'm worried about you!"

Princess Peach. They both reached for the voice, and their eyes opened.

"Mario!" Peach kissed him all over his forehead, making him laugh, "Luigi!" she turned to him next, kissing him just once on the lips.

Luigi closed his eyes, wrapping his arms around her neck and leaning in closer. She ran her thumbs over his moustache, and he found a tangled lock of her hair to twirl between his fingers. Her lips were so full and soft, it made his heart flutter. Even though it was awkward because of his nose, he was happy to tilt his head to reach her at just the right angle.

He realized that he was no longer feeling anything that didn't belong in his own head, and when he broke away for air, he jumped from the chair, finding himself no longer bound, "Hey! We're free!"

He also found that Peach had wiped the blood from his mouth and nose using more tissues from the side table, which he was grateful for.

E. Gadd held up the cord that had connected them, "Nice job, Luigi. That could have ended much differently."

Gooigi gave both brothers a massive hug, which they returned eagerly, _I don't know what happened. I tried to protect you, but I couldn't do it. I'm sorry._

"Gooigi, what did I say about-!?" he stopped himself, "Our link! It's back!"

_Of course. Only the two of us can sever it permanently._

"Really?"

_Yes. If I had your consent, I could break it off forever. However, it is difficult, and I've only just learned how._

Luigi pat him on the back, "I see. Well, don't worry about it. I want to keep the link between us, if that's alright with you."

_Of course._

Mario smiled at both of them before letting his eyes wander in the lab, "What happened to The Scientist?"

Peach beamed at them, "Polterpup chased her away."

Luigi's eyebrows flew up, _"Polterpup_ did!?"

The pup in question held his head high, his big grin even wider than usual. He had a scrap of lab coat between his teeth.

"Pup..." Luigi fell to his knees to pet him, "Puppy! Polterpup! You're a good boy, yes a _very_ good boy!"

Polterpup kissed him multiple times, and Luigi laughed with tears in his eyes.

"Yes, while you were out, Polterpup broke free of his chain and attacked her!" Peach recalled, "It was very heroic!"

Luigi passed Polterpup to Mario, "So how'd you get in the door?"

E. Gadd proudly held up a wrench, "Unscrewed the hinges. Still, we wouldn't have been able to help you if your minds were tangled together. Separating that connection could have resulted in memory loss at best and death at worst. However, _you_ knew what to do, Luigi! It was because of what you had learned from Gooigi that allowed you to fix this mess!"

"I remember!" Mario settled Polterpup in his lap as he knelt on the floor, "I was panicking. There was too much going on at the same time, but Luigi was calm. I could tell he wasn't in new territory. Even though he was afraid, he helped me out. It was incredible!"

Luigi blushed, rubbing the back of his neck, "Ah, well, you know. It was no big deal."

"No, Luigi." E. Gadd lost his smile, "This was, quite literally, a matter of life and death. If you hadn't stayed calm, you would have been trapped like this forever, too lost in your own heads to even wake from your coma-like state. You could have even merged into one person, split between two bodies, by which point pulling this cord off would have certainly killed you instantly. Make no mistake, Luigi. Because you knew which thoughts were yours, and you were able to think for yourself long enough to figure out what to do, you were directly responsible for both of you waking up as yourselves."

Luigi looked between them, settling his gaze on Gooigi, "That's what you did, huh?"

Gooigi shrugged, _It was harder for me because I had to physically leave your bloodstream, but the consequence is the same. I'm sorry about that, by the way. As much as I love you, bro, I don't want to live inside your head._

"Don't worry, bro." Luigi punched him lightly, "Feeling's mutual."

Gooigi punched him back, and Luigi laughed.

A resounding _crack!_ caught their attention. The floor tiles were falling away into the darkness. None of them even heard them land. As the cracks in the floor reached them, E. Gadd ran to the doorway.

"The house is crumbling!" E. Gadd ushered them through, "Let's get out of here! Hurry!"

Luigi scooped up Polterpup on his way out. Mario lagged behind to urge the others forward, while Peach grabbed E. Gadd's hand when he tripped. The Poltergust fell into the darkness, so Gooigi couldn't recall. The crumbling sped up, forcing them to sprint up the stairs, then through the hallway, and finally, the drawing room, where the doors opened for them.

"Let's go!" Umbra called inside, "The second story isn't stable!"

Luigi made it over first. Setting down Polterpup, he counted heads as each one crossed over, first Peach, then E. Gadd, then Gooigi.

Mario didn't make it in time. The floor collapsed beneath him, and Luigi reached out to catch his hand.

He missed.

He silently watched as Mario fell into the darkness, his face frozen in shock.

Luigi found his voice as he reached farther, _"MAAARIOOOOOOOOOO!"_

The second story began to fall, and Gooigi forced him away from the edge to stop him from getting hurt.

_"Let go!"_ Luigi sobbed, fighting against him with everything he had, _"Let me go! Please! Stop! NOOO!"_

Gooigi shapeshifted into a wall in front of Luigi, sliding along the ground to force him away from the edge just as the floor of the second story crashed right where he'd been standing.

"Ugh!" Luigi fell onto his back, and seeing him not attempting to get up, Gooigi knelt beside him, holding back tears of his own.

"You'll be no help if you become a martyr." E. Gadd knelt beside Gooigi, "Just hold on a minute."

Luigi squeezed his eyes shut, silently letting the tears fall. Peach took his hand, and the two of them cried together.

When the building had settled in the dark chasm below, Luigi had a spark of determination in his eye.

He sat up, "E. Gadd, what are the chances that Mario is still alive!?"

"I don't know. It depends on how haunted that house was. Ghostly influence may have warped that slope, but that doesn't mean it's bottomless."

"I can take that chance." Luigi took Gooigi's arm, wrapping it around his waist like a harness, "You guys hold Gooigi's other hand. Let's see just how deep this chasm goes."

Peach handed him his flashlight before taking Gooigi's hand. E. Gadd wrapped both arms around Gooigi's forearm, and the two of them braced against the ground as Gooigi shapeshifted into a long rope and Luigi descended into the darkness below.

***


	14. Chapter 14

_"Mario! I can't do this!"_

_"Yes ya can! If I did it, so can you!"_

_Luigi was holding the handlebars of the small bike that just had its training wheels taken off. The twins were 7, and their father placed both hands on Luigi's shoulders as he trembled on the seat, his feet frozen on the pedals._

_Mario stood in front of the bike, his hands overtop of Luigi's iron grip, "Do you hear me, Weegee!? I know you're scared, but once you get going, the bike'll hold ya up fine! You won't fall if you go fast!"_

_"I can't do it!" Luigi cried, "I can't! Papa! Don't let go!"_

_"I've got you, kiddo."_

_"Yeah, see!? Papa won't let'cha fall!" Mario moved aside, "You can do this! I believe in you!"_

_Luigi stared at the path ahead with a lump in his throat. His father took the handlebars, and Luigi began to pedal._

_"Yeah!" Mario ran beside the bike, "Faster!"_

_As the bike continued down the path, Luigi felt his grip loosen. His cap shaded his eyes from the sun as he leaned forward, pushing his shoulders back._

_"That's it!" Mario fell behind as Luigi picked up speed, hurrying back to the house to grab his own bike._

_Luigi smiled, "Okay, Papa! Let go!"_

_His father pushed him forward, and he peeled down the path at record speeds. He turned to drift around the corner, prepared to stick his foot out in case he fell. Mario hit his bike against his as they raced along, and both brothers began to laugh._

_"I'm doing it!" Luigi turned the bike around to head back home, "Mario! Papa! Look! Do you see!? Do you see me doing it!?"_

_"I told ya you could!" Mario stood up on the pedals, and Luigi copied the action._

_"Great job, son!" their father snatched Luigi from the bike as it whizzed past, falling to its side a few feet away._

_"Ahh!" Luigi kicked his legs in the air as his father swung him around, "I did it! I really did it!"_

_"I said ya could, Weegee!" Mario hugged him as he was set on the ground, "I told you, I knew it. I'm proud of you, bro."_

_Luigi squeezed him, "Thanks for believing in me, bro."_

_They broke away, running for their bikes to race each other once more._

***

Luigi skid to a halt at the bottom of the chasm. The shattered bits of the estate surrounded him, crushed beneath rocks and stuck to each other with rust and mildew. With Gooigi's arm still firmly wrapped around his torso, he continued into the cavern, too deep in Evershade for light to reach.

As he swept his flashlight around, he registered the sound of muffled crying. He followed the sound, his quick footsteps echoing across the rocks and dirt until he caught a shock of red in the sea of black.

Luigi let his flashlight beam linger on the hunched form of his brother, crying over the broken Poltergust as he held it tight to his chest.

Luigi knelt beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder, "Bro?"

Mario sniffed, wiping the tears from his eyes, "I'm sorry I failed you, bro..."

"Failed me?" Luigi eased the Poltergust from his hold, "Mario, what are you talking about?"

Mario didn't look up at him, but he did shiver. From the cold or from something else, Luigi couldn't tell.

"They took you away, Luigi..." Mario covered his face, "I tried to call out to you, but you didn't hear me...they killed you, and they forced me to watch..."

"Huh?" Luigi gazed into the darkness, "No, Mario, what you saw was an illusion. They're ghosts, remember? They're everywhere in here. I promise, I'm right here. I'm alive."

Mario finally looked up at him, and Luigi's heart twisted at his broken expression, "How can you tell?"

Luigi took his hand, "Do I look dead to you? Do I feel dead to you? I'm here. I'm talking to you, and this is real."

"How can I trust that?"

Luigi brushed one of Mario's tears away, trying to think of a proper response. Turning on his flashlight's dark light, he pointed it at both of them. Nothing changed.

Once Mario seemed to have gotten the message, Luigi lowered the flashlight, though he kept the light on himself, "Do you believe me now?"

Mario knocked it aside as he hugged him, bunching up the fabric of Luigi's sweater and overalls in his grip. Luigi held him tight to his body as his sobs shook both of them, though this time, they were not cries of misery, but of relief.

_"You're alive. I'm so happy."_ Mario gasped as he pulled away, "Then we need to get out of here!"

"You bet!" Luigi stretched Gooigi off his body to throw over Mario's head, and they both held on, "Gooigi! Let's go!"

It took Gooigi a second or two to process the information, as his senses were fuzzier when he was stretched out, but once he got it, he began to drag them up the side of the drop off towards the ground above.

Peach was just beginning to worry that Luigi wasn't coming back up when Gooigi stiffened, and Peach and E. Gadd held on tighter, tugging on him to bring the brothers back up.

Luigi and Mario emerged over the cliff, and once they were safely atop the lawn, Gooigi reformed and hugged both of them.

"Thank goodness!" Peach exclaimed, "Luigi! Mario!"

"Hey, Princess..." Mario collapsed into her, out of breath, "Luigi, please tell me these illusions have never done that to you before..."

Luigi swallowed, "Um..."

"You're kidding!" Mario gripped his arm, "Luigi, I'm so sorry!"

"Oh shoot!" Luigi dragged him away from the drop off, "No, Mario, it's fine. They usually don't need to do anything close to that to scare me."

"But still." Mario hugged him, "I'm sorry. It's so horrible."

"Bro, it's fine. I'm used to it."

That was the wrong thing to say.

"What do you mean you're used to it!?" Mario fell to the ground, "All this time, and it's been that bad!?"

Luigi sighed, "We need to get you out of here. You can't fight like this."

"No! I'm not leaving without you!"

Luigi threw him into Peach's arms, "Get him out of here. These illusions can have bad side effects."

She touched his cheek, "But what about you?"

"I'll be fine, just go!"

She took Mario away, though he didn't go without a fight, and Luigi looked over his shoulder, flashlight at the ready.

"Well, we lost the Poltergust." Luigi turned to E. Gadd, "What do we do?"

"We have more, but we don't have time to fetch them." he replied, "That crazy scientist will escape if we don't hurry. Gooigi, catching her is _your_ job, now."

Gooigi shook his head, filling the link with dread and fear.

"Gooigi, hey." Luigi grabbed his arms, "It's okay. I'm right here with you."

_But I can't do it._ Gooigi quaked, trying to pull away, _I can't. Please don't make me._

Luigi bit his lip, "I'm sorry, but we don't have much of a choice. If she gets away now, we may lose our chance, and she'll only come back stronger."

_I can't, Luigi! I really can't do it! I CAN'T!!! CAN'T DOO ITT **PLEEAASSE DDDOONN'TTTTT MMAAAKKKEE MMMEEEEE!!!!!!!**_

"Ugh!" Luigi let go of him, "It's no use, E. Gadd. He's too afraid."

"But he's got the only Poltergust we can use! He _has_ to!"

While Luigi was wracking his brain for a possible solution, the feeling of ice returned to the back of his tongue. He had no time, now. He was about to be overshadowed.

This time though, he found that he was able to fight back. He choked like he'd swallowed a big chunk of ice, his hands shaking as they clutched at his throat, but he pushed at the invader on his mind. He shoved back against it, bracing with all his mental willpower. He wondered why Gooigi wasn't there, but found that he had withdrawn from his mind to the point where he was completely absent. Gooigi was so afraid that he was abandoning him. Luigi knew it made sense why he would do that, but it still broke his heart.

His grip on himself faltered, and he guessed that he would only have five seconds before he was gone.

Five.

He regained the use of his senses. E. Gadd was shaking Gooigi, trying to get him to respond, but he had frozen even to the point of losing his jello physics and becoming akin to solid brick.

Four.

_Gooigi._ Luigi thought to him, losing his voice in the ice, _I need you. You have to save me._

Gooigi only responded with a garbled mess of emotions, stronger than Luigi ever thought possible for him.

Three.

Too loud. It was all too much. Luigi grasped at his skull under his hair, the signature cap falling aside, _Gooigi, please! What are you more afraid of!? The Scientist or losing me!?_

Two.

Gooigi lifted his head, locking eyes with him. The ice was all encompassing now, sticking Luigi's eyes to his eye sockets and causing his breath to fog up in the air.

One.

Luigi's hands tightened around his throat against his will, cutting off his oxygen supply. _This is it._ he thought, _I'm going to die. She's going to kill me._

Something snapped like a guitar string, and Luigi blacked out.

_I'm going to **DDIIIEEE-!**_

In a flash, the ice vanished, and Luigi just caught his body slumping over in front of him.

E. Gadd caught it, "Luigi!? Luigi, are you okay!? Can you hear me!?"

Luigi knelt beside him as he piloted Gooigi's body, _"Here."_

"Huh?" E. Gadd smiled wide, "Oh, you took him out, Gooigi! How clever!"

Gooigi nodded.

_Wait, how does that help?_ Luigi thought, _Can't she just take my body with no one in it?_

_Hm. Not quite._ Gooigi let the chip from E. Gadd rise to his palm for Luigi to see, _You are still in your body, you're just projecting yourself onto me. It's the reason we cannot switch bodies. We can only go back and forth._

_So...what are you doing, then?_

Gooigi retrieved his dark light, pointing it at Luigi's still body, _While you are in me, your body essentially goes to sleep while it waits for you to come back, and because of this connection we have, she cannot overshadow you so long as I have you, as the effects of this chip will bleed in between us. Thus..._

The dark light swept over Luigi's body, booting out The Scientist, who rolled onto the ground a few feet away. She had stars over her head as she lay completely dazed.

_She gets trapped trying to control you._

Gooigi retreated, and Luigi took that as his opportunity to jump forward, sucking her up into the vacuum while E. Gadd hovered over his body.

She didn't even scream while she fought against the Poltergust, and once she lost the strength to keep fighting, all she said was, "Well played, my dear. Well played."

They took in the silence as the setting sun broke through the clouds, shedding minimal light over Evershade Valley. Luigi returned to his body feeling sluggish and slow, but he was glad at least that after all of that, she simply disappeared without any more fuss.

"Yeah!" Powder lifted him onto her shoulders, "Luigi number one!"

The ally ghosts all gathered around him as she set him on his feet, and he stumbled into Gooigi, who held him in a tight hug.

_I'm sorry I froze up like that._ he told him, _You could have died, and I would have watched and done nothing._

"No, Gooigi." Luigi pushed him back, "I called out to you, and you came to my rescue. You _saved_ me." he chuckled, "Not that it was the first time, but seriously. I wouldn't have survived without you."

Gooigi looked around at all the expectant faces, including that of his creator, _Am I a hero?_

"Yes." Luigi shook his hand, "You are most _certainly_ a hero. You're _my_ hero!"

Gooigi looked up at Powder, something like anticipation passing through the link, _Can I...?_

Luigi smiled, gesturing towards the goo creature, "Powder, if you wouldn't mind..."

She got the hint, sweeping Gooigi into her arms to hold him up, "Gooigi number one!"

_"GOOIGI NUMBER ONE!!!"_

He stood up on her shoulders, throwing both arms into the air as he basked in the praise, the same way Luigi had all those months ago.

Luigi made eye contact with E. Gadd, and the two of them shared a knowing smile.

***

Once E. Gadd had a functioning Poltergust linked to Gooigi, he was able to recall to it so Luigi could dump them in the ghost vault. There was always a risk that they could escape again, and ghosts were famous for holding grudges, but Luigi figured he didn't need to worry about that at the moment. Taking Peach's hand, he walked with her to the old site of the estate, where hoards of ghosts were hauling wood and tile from the collapsed chasm and undoing the space-bending of the dozens of ghosts too weak to escape from the house. Many of said ghosts vanished because they couldn't hold a form, but many others were being nursed back to health with energy given by healthy ghosts. As each piece of the house fell into place, one of the greenies noticed him and put down the stack she was carrying.

"Luigi!" she flew to him, "Guys! I can't believe you did it! This house has been the bane of our existence for years!"

Luigi beamed, "Shady! Glad to see you're feeling better!"

"I sure am! Told you I could handle it!"

Luigi gestured to all the ghosts, "What are you guys doing?"

"Oh, we're renovating the place!" she replied, "We decided that instead of abandoning it, we're going to make it a safe haven for ghosts! After all, the place has caused so much suffering over the years, it's about time it did something good."

"Nice! That's a great idea!"

"Yup! And it's all thanks to you, Luigi!" Shady gestured to him with a flourish, "Oh, and your family, of course!"

"Yes." Victoria came over to float beside her, "This house was once a place of happiness, but has fallen to evil since my mother started her awful experiments."

Luigi nodded, "You know...she'll come back one day. The ghost vault doesn't last forever."

Victoria's smile fell, and for a moment, Luigi saw the emptiness they had held when she was just a child in a thin nightgown.

"I know." she fiddled with a stray lock of her hair, "But hopefully, by the time she escapes, I will be ready to face her myself. I'm sorry I couldn't help you much this time, though. I heard about what she did to you, and I am absolutely sickened. I hope maybe you will forgive me one day for allowing this to happen."

"What!? No! No! Stop!" Luigi said sternly, "Do _not_ blame yourself for what she did! Powder and Umbra couldn't even get inside the room, so it's not like you could have helped anyway! This was not your fault! It was _hers!_ Do you understand?"

Victoria was shocked at being scolded, but then she gave him a warm smile, "Of course, Uncle Luigi. I understand. Thank you."

As construction on the house continued, Luigi felt an odd sense of unease. It wasn't noticeable at first, but it became more so as he sat in the brush in the yard with Gooigi beside him while Peach headed back to Shady's station to see what the greenies were up to. Toadette and Captain Toad were there too, which made sense. The two of them were adventure buddies and Toadette was a passionate architect.

Finally recognizing the feeling, Luigi said, "Gooigi?"

Gooigi snapped out of his train of thought.

"Is something wrong?"

Gooigi shook his head, his thoughts too scattered to be discernible.

"Hey, it's alright." Luigi wrapped an arm around him, "You can tell me."

_It's not that._ Gooigi looked away, _I was just thinking about how easy it was for you to get me out, at least, compared to how difficult it was for me to have done anything against her. She absolutely terrifies me, but you handled her so well. I just can't help but think that you could have done everything alone if you had any of the chances that I did._

Luigi felt a profound sense of epiphany course through him at hearing almost his own words echoed back at him from ages ago. Gooigi looked up at him, confused at the feeling.

"Gooigi..." Luigi smiled as he thought, "You're attributing your success to nothing but sheer luck instead of your own competence. Sure, maybe I could have done it, but it doesn't really matter. You've done so many things that I couldn't have done, and even if I could, so what? Remember when we were disappearing into King Boo's painting and you pushed me to keep trying to escape? I would be in his private gallery right now if it wasn't for you!"

Gooigi scooted away from him, _Luigi, what are you talking about?_

"I realize that now because I do the same thing all the time!" Luigi's excitement and relief was building, "Every time I did something impressive, I would tell myself that Mario could have done it just as well or even better if he were in my place, but Mario _didn't_ do it! _I_ did! _I_ captured King Boo and _I_ got my friends out of their paintings and _I_ put the Dark Moon back in the sky!"

Luigi's gaze snapped back to Gooigi, who's confusion was morphing into pleasant surprise.

"Does it really matter who _could_ have done it?" Luigi squeezed his hand, "I already told you. If you couldn't escape alone, then neither could I. You've done so many impressive things over the year I've known you, and I will not listen to you talk down to yourself in order to prop me up. It's a mistake I've made far too many times. Do you understand?"

Gooigi laughed softly, the sound gurgling through him like fizz in a shaken soda, _I understand you loud and clear. You're right, of course. It's just that I've been looking up to you since I heard the professor's stories about you. You're my world, Luigi. You're my hero._

"Then I want you to trust my word." Luigi reached into his pocket for something he seldom needed; His wallet, "Let me show you something."

He shifted between the various things inside, including coins and bills from various different countries, his passport, his citizenship cards, his driver's license, until he found the grainy old photo he was looking for. In it were seven-year-old Luigi and Mario, both on their child-sized bikes as they peeled down the road.

Gooigi gingerly took the photo, _Aw. How cute._

Luigi touched the hand that held the photo, "This photo was taken twenty five years ago. Up until this point, I never did anything dangerous. I didn't even use shampoo if I could help it because I was afraid of getting soap in my eyes. Mario had been riding his bike without training wheels for a few months, and I decided I wanted to learn how to do it too, but it was terrifying. I don't remember it perfectly because I was so young, but it was similar to the terror I feel facing ghosts today." he laughed, "It seems so silly to carry this around with me, but it was the first time I overcame something that scared me, and I will always be proud of that."

_You should be._ Gooigi handed the photo back to him, _Do you still have the hat you're wearing here?_

"Yeah, but it's way too small for me now, and it's all worn and faded. I wouldn't dream of throwing it out."

As Luigi put the photo away and stashed the wallet, Gooigi sighed sadly, _I understand what you're telling me. We all started somewhere, and though I admire you, you don't want me to treat you like you're better than anyone else."_

"Correct." Luigi wrapped him up in a side hug, "Jeez. I didn't think I'd ever feel exactly what it's like to be in Mario's place."

Gooigi didn't reply.

Luigi watched the construction on the estate as he held Gooigi close, "Hey, I know you still feel bad about tapping out. Don't. She tortured and traumatized you. I've only seen a fraction of what she did to you, and it scarred me. Despite that, you still found a way to save me. Thank you."

Gooigi shook with silent sobs, _I wish I could have done more. I hate her._

"I know. I hate her too."

There was just one more question he had. Among the ghosts that were working, he spotted E. Gadd among them, so he waved his arm to get his attention, and the old man headed over.

"Hey, E. Gadd." Luigi leaned forward on his legs, "If you were afraid to leave your computer, then why did you go off on a field mission by yourself?"

E. Gadd lost his smile as he sighed in exasperation, "Do we have to talk about this right now?"

"I guess not, but I'm going home with Mario soon and I wanted to clear that up."

After receiving a nod from Gooigi, E. Gadd plopped down in the brush beside them, "Fine. To be honest, I think I was sick of being afraid. You know how stubborn I can get. I wasn't even planning on going inside, I just wanted to get some paranormal readings from the surrounding area. It was the only part of Evershade that I had yet to map out, and I don't like staring at that blank spot on my huge map. I guess I was just in over my head. Again."

"Yeesh." Luigi replied, "You didn't even go inside?"

"Not that I remember, no."

"And my guess is that if you had known what was going to happen..."

"I wouldn't have dared. Although, it did turn out fine in the end for most people."

His gaze darted to Gooigi for half a second when he said that, and Gooigi avoided it, burying his face in Luigi's turtleneck sweater.

Shady fumbled with a wooden support beam, and E. Gadd darted to her, "Ack! Don't carry that by yourself, kiddo! Hold on-!"

When he was gone, Luigi turned to his companion, "Walk with me?"

Gooigi nodded, getting to his feet and holding a hand out for Luigi to take.

The two of them stopped at a cliff overlooking the rest of the valley as the sun began to rise. Still hand-in-hand, Luigi stuffed his free hand in his pocket as the soft glow illuminated the world.

Gooigi turned to face him, _Riesci a indovinare cosa ho fatto di recente?_

"Hey!" Luigi elbowed him, "You're learning Italian!"

_I want to learn as much as I can while I'm still here._ Gooigi pulled his hands into fists in front of him, _I am so grateful that I have the chance to learn so much. Thank you for everything, Luigi._

Luigi smiled warmly, "Hey, it's no trouble. You've taught me a lot, too."

Gooigi hugged him, and Luigi returned it tightly.

_I..._ Gooigi relaxed in his hold, _I love you, Luigi. I love you with all my gooy heart. Thank you for believing in me._

Luigi nearly choked at the emotions that overwhelmed him, "You're welcome. I love you, too."

When they were this close together, their feelings echoed back and forth even stronger than normal. Luigi could almost see himself through Gooigi's perspective. He felt respect. Brotherhood. Admiration. Comradery. Most of all though, he felt devotion and loyalty, as well as a strong feeling of love for him. He softly began to cry. Who knew Gooigi loved him so much?

"Gooigi, you're always welcome in my family." Luigi said into his ear, "Always. As long as I'm alive, I'll always be there for you."

Gooigi didn't reply, but he did hold on tighter.

They continued to soak in each other's comfort until the sun was casting long shadows across the grass through the haze of the valley.

They pulled away from each other, sharing a laugh as they walked hand-in-hand down the path.

_You'd better save me sooner next time, bro. The hospitality was awful._

Luigi laughed again, a true, genuine laugh, and it felt so good to finally feel some semblance of joy.

"Next time, I'll take a ghost cab."

Gooigi laughed in turn, and Luigi could feel the joy radiating off of him in waves.

Their story was far from over, but whether from a jar in a lab or a cradle in a cloud, they knew they would always have each other.

And for now, that was more than enough.

THE END


End file.
